Let's Go Team Wildfire!
by BigBossMan538
Summary: A human named Anthony is transported to the world of Pokémon where he has been turned into a Growlithe and makes friends in the form of Squirtle, Zorua, and Riolu. Little do they know of the challenges and dangers ahead and their role in saving the Pokémon world from apocalypse. Rated K for mild violence.
1. Chapter 1

**Let's Go Team Wildfire!**

**Chapter One: The World of Pokémon**

***Anthony's point of view***

I woke up one day to find myself in a rainbow-colored room.

''W-wh-where am I?'' I asked groggily.

''Welcome!'' said a voice cheerfully. ''This is the portal that leads to the world of Pokémon.''

''W-world of Pokémon?'' I asked starting to wake up. ''But, my world already has Pokémon

in it. You mean that there is another world with Pokémon in it?''

''Yes,'' the voice replied. ''But, this world only has _Pokémon_. No humans. Now, before I

can let you go through, I have several questions for you. I want you to answer them sincerely. Are you

ready?''

''Questions?'' I asked. ''O.K. then.''

''Let the interview begin!'' the voice cried. ''Question one: if you saw someone crying, what

would you do?''

''I would ask that person what's wrong,'' I replied.

''Question two: if a bully was threatening to beat up your friend, how would you respond?'' the voice inquired.

''I would stand up to that bully and tell him to leave my friend alone,'' I responded.

''Question three: if a beautiful person walked by you and winked, what would you do?'' the voice asked.

''I would just wave but I already have a girl friend,'' I responded.

''Question four: if your friend was late to a meeting, how would you respond?'' the voice

enquired.

''I would wait patiently for my friend,'' I replied.

''Question five: are you a male or a female?'' the voice questioned.

''I'm a male,'' I answered.

''Based on your responses, I would say you have a very loyal personality,'' the voice said.

''You're true to your friends and loved ones no matter what. You're always eager to help someone in

need. As a result, the Pokémon I believe you would be is…Growlithe!''

''Growlithe?'' I asked surprised. ''I'm not trying to sound rude but what does this have to

do with anything?'' But before I could get an answer, a warm light appeared and I went into it.

*Squirtle's p.o.v*

It was a warm summer's day, and I was out in Pokémon Square looking for new recruits

for our aspiring Pokémon rescue team.

''Say my good man,'' I asked Snubble, a bulldog-like Pokémon. '' Would you like to join my

rescue team? We'll go on lots of adventures together and help others!''

''Not in this lifetime,'' the snob replied in a stuck-up manner as he walked away.

''Jerk,'' I said to myself. I then walked back towards my home in Turtleshell Pond when my

friends Zorua, a small black fox-like Pokémon with some blue accents on its head and feet, and Riolu, a

black and blue humanoid dog-like Pokémon, walked up to me.

''Any luck?'' asked Zorua. I shook my head no.

''Why wouldn't anyone want to join our team?'' wondered Riolu. ''We're the best and

everyone should know it!''

''Well you guys can try and get someone to join us but I'm going back to my pond and get a

bite,'' I said in a depressed tone. The gang ran off towards the Square and I walked back home and past

our base. As I made my way through the woods, I admired the lovely, tall, green trees. ''Maybe we don't

need a fourth member,'' I said to myself. After all the minimum number of members is two and we

already have three members on the team. Ah, I'll talk to the guys about it the next time I see them.'' I

was almost at the pond when I saw a bizarre bright orange, striped object in a glen. As I got closer, it

looked like a Growlithe. ''Hey!'' I yelled as I ran up to the Pokémon.

***Anthony's p.o.v***

_Where am I?_ I thought. _Am I dreaming this? I feel a pleasant breeze…I hear a voice from _

_somewhere…I wonder who it is._

''Hey!'' the voice called. ''Wake up, buddy! Are you alive?'' There was a pause for a

second. ''Only one way to find out I guess,'' the voice said. As I was starting to wake up, I got pelted with

a stream of cold water which caused me to leap up with a shout only for me to see a Squirtle in front of me.

''What'd you do that for?'' I asked in an annoyed tone.

''Well, sorry buddy,'' the Squirtle said defensively. ''I just didn't know if you were alive.'' I

just sighed.

''It's O.K.'' I replied. ''You meant no harm.'' Then, a realization suddenly hit me. ''Wait a

minute! You're a Pokémon! Pokémon can't talk.'' The Squirtle scoffed.

''What?''the Squirtle asked clearly offended. ''All Pokémon can talk dummy!''

''Well, where I come from, Pokémon only say their names or make noises,'' I responded.

''Well, where_ did_ you come from?'' the Squirtle asked.

''I came from the human world,'' I responded. ''I'm a human.''

''A human?'' the curious Tiny Turtle Pokémon asked. ''You look like a Growlithe to me.''

''I have no idea what you're talking about,'' I said as I tried to stand. ''Woooaaah!'' I cried

before I fell on my back. ''What's wrong with me?'' I asked worriedly. I looked down at my body and saw

only cream-colored fur where my chest and stomach are and bright-orange and black striped fur on the

rest of my body. I saw that my feet and hands were now little paws with two claws on each of them.

''Do you have a mirror by chance?'' I asked the Squirtle.

''What's a mirror?'' the Squirtle asked me. I just sighed. ''I may not have a

mirror but there's a pool of water at my home in Turtleshell Pond that you can look into. Follow me!''

''Thank you,'' I said with a smile. As I tried to follow my new friend, though, I stumbled

about like I was just waking up. ''I'm going to miss having two legs,'' I said sadly.

''Here,'' Squirtle said coming back to me, ''I'll help you.'' He lifted me up and escorted

me to the pond.

''Thanks,'' I said. When we got to the pond, I got to the edge of the pond and looked. I

saw the Puppy Pokémon's face instead of mine with the only difference was instead of having grey eyes,

I still retained my blue eye color. ''It's true,'' I said somberly. ''I am a Growlithe. Why did this happen to

me? Was this a curse?''

''Do you remember anything else from your past?'' Squirtle inquired.

''No,'' I replied. ''Only that I am a human and my name, Anthony.''

''Anthony?'' Squirtle responded laughing. ''That's a funny name!'' I just stood there

awkwardly. ''I'm Squirtle. Just Squirtle.''

''Son!'' a voice called out. We turned to see a Blastoise walking towards us. ''Who's this?''

the Blastoise asked referring to me.

''This is Anthony, dad,'' Squirtle said. ''I found him in the woods. He thinks he's a human,''

he whispered. I mouthed to him to not say that.

''A human?'' Blastoise said surprised. He then laughed a hearty laugh. ''A comedian I see.'' I

just laughed awkwardly.

''Say Anthony,'' Squirtle suddenly asked. ''Would you like to join my rescue team?''

''Rescue team?'' I asked.

''Yep!'' Squirtle said. ''A rescue team is a group that rescues other Pokémon from danger or

get a special item for someone.''

''And yours truly is the leader of Team Hydro!'' Blastoise boasted.

''Dad's my idol!'' Squirtle added in as he hugged his dad. I just smiled at their love.

''Sure, Squirtle,'' I responded. ''I'll join your team.''

''Hooray!'' Squirtle cried with glee. ''I'll take you to my other friends. They'll like you. C'mon!''

''I'm right behind you!'' I called out. ''It was nice to meet you Blastoise!''

''You too, Anthony!'' I heard Blastoise call. ''Good luck, boys!'' We ran through the forest to a

clearing where there was a straight white path with a kind of rounded building on the left of the path

and another path going to the right.

''Riolu! Zorua!'' Squirtle yelled. ''I've found a new team member.'' A Riolu and a Zorua

then emerged from the building. ''Guys, this is Anthony,'' Squirtle told the two dog-like Pokémon.

''Nice to meet you,'' I said in a friendly way.

''You, too,'' Zorua replied. Riolu approached me and examined me.

''I've never seen you before,'' Riolu said. ''Are you new around here?''

''Yes,'' I answered as I watched him circle me.

''He thinks he's a human!'' Squirtle added in. I just glared at him.

''A human?!'' Zorua and Riolu said in shock.

''Yeah, I found him unconscious in the woods,'' Squirtle elaborated. Riolu looked like he was thinking.

''Listen you,'' he said suddenly to me with hostility in his voice. ''I'm the leader of this team

and you do everything that I say. No questions asked. And when we're out on missions, I expect you to

do no less than a perfect job. GOT IT?''

''Y-yes,'' I said nervously as he got out of my face. ''By the way, what's the team's name?'' I

asked.

''Name?'' Riolu asked as well. ''Huh. I never thought of a name yet. Any ideas, guys?''

''How about Team Midnight?'' Zorua offered.

''Team Shell Shock?'' Squirtle added.

''I'm thinking Team Discipline,'' Riolu said.

''I'm not great at coming up with names,'' I said. Suddenly, it hit me. ''I got it! Wildfire!'' I said

wagging my tail. There was a moment of silence. _They hate it_, I thought somberly.

''That's awesome!'' the gang said.

''I'll go fill out our application right away!'' Zorua said happily as he ran into the building.

''Well done, rookie,'' Riolu said. ''You proved yourself in _that _aspect.''

''Thanks…?'' I questioned.

''Hey Anthony, got anywhere to sleep tonight?'' Squirtle asked.

''No,'' I replied.

''Well, I know where you could sleep,'' Squirtle said. ''Here at the base!'' he said as he pointed to the

building that Zorua entered. We went inside and looked around. There was a small table with four

chairs to the left, baskets of fruit to the right, and a bed of straw with a window above it in the back.

''I like it,'' I said as I looked at Squirtle.

''I thought you would,'' Squirtle said with a smile.

''O.K., the application is submitted,'' Zorua said. ''We should get our license, badges, and scarves

tomorrow.''

''Good,'' Riolu said. ''Now let's get to sleep. We'll stock up on supplies tomorrow.''

''Yes, dad,'' Squirtle said sarcastically while rolling his eyes. ''Good night, Anthony!''

''Good night, guys!'' I called as they walked off. I walked back into the base. _What a strange day. I get _

_turned into a Pokémon and become part of a Pokémon rescue team,_ I thought to myself. _Maybe this is _

_just a dream. I'll just go to sleep and all will be well tomorrow. I'll be back in my apartment, go to _

_Viridian City College in a few months, and be with my sweet, sweet Larraine._ I then laid down on my bed

of dead leaves and slowly went to sleep.


	2. Chapter 2

**Let's Go Team Wildfire!**

**Chapter Two: The First Mission**

***Anthony's p.o.v***

I woke up the next morning to the sound of birds chirping. After waking up completely, I

examined my body.

''I'm still a Growlithe,'' I said to myself. ''Why did this happen? I don't remember anything

that could lead to the reason why this happened. This is so strange.'' I then heard the flapping of wings

outside the base and went to examine it. A Pelipper, a pelican-like Pokémon, landed itself on the

mailbox and then turned to look at me.

''Good morning!'' he said cheerfully. ''Do you live here? I've never seen you before.''

''That's right,'' I responded. ''I'm part of the new rescue team, Team Wildfire. It's nice to

meet you.''

''The feeling's mutual,'' Pelipper said in return. ''Well here, I got you some mail right here

for you.'' He opened his bill and offered me to take the package from his bill. I grabbed the package with

my mouth and got a fishy taste. ''Sorry 'bout the taste,'' Pelipper said. ''But, one can't work

on an empty stomach!''

''It's fine,'' I replied with a smile. ''Thanks for the delivery.''

''Good luck with rescuing!'' Pelipper called as he flew away. As soon as he was far

enough, I started gagging on the horrible fish taste.

''Hey Anthony!'' I heard Squirtle call out as he, Zorua, and Riolu walked down the path.

''Did we get anything in the mail?''

''Yeah, a package!'' I called back. My friends quickly ran over to me and Riolu grabbed the

package and opened it.

''Yes!'' he said happily. ''It's our rescuing license, scarves, and badges.'' The badges had an

egg shape with white on the top and pink on the bottom and two yellow wings protruding from the side.

There were four scarves inside as well with the colors being red, blue, black, and dark orange to

correspond with our types. ''According to the rules, it says once you complete or fail a mission raise your

badges into the air for one second to be teleported back to the base,'' Riolu said. We put on our scarves

and put the badges and license away in a kit.

''Now let's go stock up on supplies and give Anthony a tour of the square,'' Squirtle said.

''I'm game,'' I said interested. We then made our way to the square.

''Anthony, this is Pokémon Square,'' Squirtle said. It was a decently sized square with

various shops along the paths. The various Pokémon in the Square waved at us and greeted us. We

stopped by a shop ran by two Keckleons, bipedal chameleon-like Pokémon , who were busily running

around putting items on shelves and in drawers. ''Hey guys!'' Squirtle greeted.

''Hi, Squirtle,'' the two lizards replied finally stopping to serve us. We had a nice chat

and bought various healing berries for future expeditions. Suddenly, there was a huge commotion

behind us.

''HELP! HELP MY POOR BABY!'' a Butterfree screamed as she fluttered about frantically. Blastoise quickly ran up to the poor butterfly-like Pokémon.

''What's wrong, miss?'' he quickly asked.

''It's horrible!'' she said crying. ''My poor Caterpie fell into a fissure that opened up in

the ground! Someone save my baby!'' She was sobbing hysterically. I felt so bad for her and quickly ran

up.

''We'll save your child,'' I said.

''Oh, thank you!'' she said starting to calm down. ''It was in the woods not far from here.

Just take the first path going right.''

''Come on, guys!'' I called to my friends. ''Let's go!'' We then ran off for the woods.

***Riolu's p.o.v***

We made our way towards the location where Butterfree said her child fell. We then

came upon a great fissure in the ground where there was much foliage.

''I guess this is it,'' Squirtle said. The fissure was very deep and, admittedly, a little

nerve wracking.

''Oh no,'' Anthony said backing away. ''I just remembered. I'm afraid of heights!''

''Oh come on, you big sissy,'' I said annoyed. I jumped down from ledge to ledge as I

made my way down to the bottom of the fissure. ''Just follow my lead!'' I called. Anthony slowly made

his way to the edge though I could tell he was hyperventilating out of fear. He then started to jump from

ledge to ledge and he made it safely to the ground.

''Phew,'' he said relieved. The rest of the team soon joined us and we then explored

the caverns. As we explored to cave, we got continuously attacked by savage Pokémon. Even though

they were easy to defeat, they were quite numerous.

''CATERPIE!'' Zorua cried. ''WHERE ARE YOU?!''

''Would you keep it down?'' I demanded. ''Do you want every Pokémon in this

dungeon to come attack us?''

''I was just trying to help,'' Zorua responded.

''I'm the leader!'' I snapped. ''I'll let you know if you can help.'' Suddenly, a voice called

out.

''H-h-helloooo?'' the voice called.

''Caterpie? Is that you?'' Squirtle called back. ''We're Team Wildfire! We're coming to

save you! Stay put!''

''O.K.,'' his shaky voice replied. All of a sudden, Caterpie screamed.

''Oh no!'' Anthony said. He ran off ahead after Caterpie and we quickly followed behind.

We got to a dead end where Caterpie was cornered by a group of Wurmple. ''Hey!'' Anthony called.

''Leave Caterpie alone!''

''I don't think so,'' the biggest Wurmple said. ''This lil' runt trespassed on our territory

and for that, we're gonna make him _pay!_''

''He's just a child!'' Zorua snapped.

''Enough of this!'' the monstrous Wurmple yelled. ''Let's get 'em boys. Poison Sting!'' The

beefy Wurmple launched at us like a rocket. We quickly dodged and began our first battle together.

***Zorua's p.o.v***

For a battle with a bunch of Wurmples, the fight got pretty intense. One Wurmple

attempted to stab Anthony with its yellow horn.

''Anthony, be careful of the horn!'' I called to Anthony. ''It'll poison you!''

''Got it!'' Anthony replied. ''Ember!'' Anthony released a flurry of fire balls at the Wurmple

thus knocking it out.

''You'll pay for that!'' a Wurmple said to Anthony. ''String Shot!'' Anthony got coated in

sticky webbing. ''Poison Sting!'' The Wurmple rocketed at Anthony and almost stabbed

him however, Squirtle intervened with Water Gun and sent the Wurmple flying. Squirtle then undid

Anthony's silk trap. Riolu was dealing with the big boss Wurmple. The Wurmple put up a good fight but

he was no match for Riolu's Force Palm attack. The Wurmples ran off into the forest and we went to

Caterpie who was curled up in fear.

''Hey,'' Riolu said to Caterpie. ''It's O.K. They're gone.'' Caterpie uncurled and looked

around to make sure.

''Are you the team here to rescue me?'' He asked.

''Yes,'' Anthony said. ''Your mother is worried sick about you.''

''I was so scared!'' Caterpie sobbed.

''It's all right, little guy,'' Squirtle said. ''We'll get you out a.s.a.p.'' We raised our badges

into the air and we were quickly teleported out of the dungeon. As we entered Pokémon Square,

Butterfree and the other residents were quick to greet us.

''My baby!'' Butterfree cried referring to Caterpie.

''Mommy!'' Caterpie replied. They hugged and kissed each other over and over which

was a heartwarming sight. I think I even saw Squirtle tear up a little!

''Thank you all so much!'' Butterfree said to us. ''Here's your reward.'' She handed us

an Oran Berry, a Rawst Berry, and a Pecha Berry. ''I'm sorry but that's all I can afford to give you. I could

pay you back in Poke if you want.''

''No, its fine,'' Riolu said. ''Seeing you being reunited with your son is the best reward

for us.''

''What generous youngsters you are!'' Butterfree said in relief. ''It's nice to know that

there are teams who don't need cash rewards in this world.'' Butterfree and Caterpie left for their

home.

''Son!'' Blastoise called as he approached us. ''I'm so proud of all of you for saving

Caterpie.''

''Aw, it was nothing, dad,'' Squirtle said. ''I can't wait to do more missions!''

''I know you'll make a great rescuer,'' Blastoise said. ''I know it. Besides, you have great

friends to help you,'' he said referring to Anthony, Riolu, and I.

***Anthony's p.o.v***

''We did a great job back there team!'' I said while we walked back to the base.

''Yes, I must say you all did well,'' Riolu said. ''Let's keep it up, shall we?''

''We will,'' I said mildly annoyed. ''Anyways,'' I yawned. ''Let's get some rest. I'll see

you guys tomorrow.''

''Good night,'' Riolu, Zorua, and Squirtle said almost in unison. I walked into my base

thinking as I went to my bed.

_I can't believe I had an actual Pokémon battle AS a Pokémon!_ I thought. _I've never _

_felt such excitement before in my entire life. It felt great to reunite a mother with her son. It makes me _

_miss my mother. _I started to tear up a bit. _Be strong, _I thought to myself. _She would want me to. She's _

_always with me. _I then drifted off into a deep sleep.


	3. Chapter 3

**Let's Go Team Wildfire!**

**Chapter Three: Tears and Sparks**

***Larraine's p.o.v, NOTE: Larraine's events take place the same night Anthony vanished.***

My name is Larraine. I live in Viridian City with my boy friend, Anthony. We're

renting an apartment together for our fall college terms in said city. My original home was in Vermillion

City where my father, Lt. Surge, runs his Electric-type Pokémon themed gym. Watching him battle many

challengers inspired me to run his gym where, just like my father, I'll specialize in the Electric-type.

I met Anthony and his brother, Napoleon, at summer camp. He and I were just eight years old back then and Napoleon was nine. I

was being picked on by bullies because I wore glasses. Anthony stood up to those

bullies for me. Afterwards, we exchanged addresses and became pen pals. We met each other many times afterwards. Over time, our feelings for each other became more and more apparent.

However, my father wasn't trusting of Anthony and they sometimes hit-it off. Eventually though, they learned to get along. Anyways, one day, I came back one night to

our apartment to see my knight in shining armor for he gets off work at five p.m. while I get off at six.

''Helloooo,'' I said in a sing-song tone. ''Where's my big, handsome man?'' I waited

for a response but there was none. ''Sweetie?'' I called. _Maybe he's asleep_, I thought. I looked in the

bathroom, then the kitchen, and then the living room. I finally checked in his room. I went to his bed and

felt for him. ''Oh no,'' I said concerned. ''He's usually home by now. He'd never not let me know if he's

working late!'' I got on my phone and dialed 911.

''911, what's your emergency?'' a lady on the other line asked.

''My boy friend!'' I cried. ''He's gone missing! He's usually here at five but when I got

home, he wasn't here! Please find him,'' I said starting to cry.

''Hold on, miss,'' the lady responded. ''Stay calm. We'll be right over.'' She hung up.

''Oh, Anthony,'' I said to myself. ''I hope nothing bad happened to you!'' I put my face

in my palms and sobbed.

***Anthony's p.o.v***

It was the middle of the night. I started to have a strange dream.

''Where…Where am I?'' I said to myself. I was in that rainbow-colored room again.

''Maybe…Is this a dream…?'' I asked myself. Suddenly, a faint, feminine figure appeared before me.

''Oh? There's someone here,'' I said. ''Who is it…? Someone I know…?...Hmm…I can't remember.'' My

dream then ended. The next morning, I woke up. ''I think I dreamt something,'' I said to myself. ''But I

can't quite remember what that dream was about. Oh well. Today's another day of rescues!'' My friends

then came into the base. ''Good morning, guys,'' I said to them. ''Anything in the mail today?''

''Yep,'' Squirtle said as he opened an envelope. ''This says, and I quote:

'BZZ BZZ BZZ! I HEARD ABOUT YOU FROM CATERPIE. PLEASE. WE NEED YOUR HELP.

MAGENEMITE IS IN TROUBLE. A STRANGE ELECTROMAGNETIC WAVE FLOWED THROUGH A

DUNGEON…AND IT STUCK TOGETHER MAGNEMITE AND MAGNEMITE…THAT ISN'T ENUGH TO FORM A

MAGNETON. ITS NOT COMPLETE THE WAY IT IS NOW. PLEASE. WE NEED HELP. BZZ BZZ BZZ.

SIGNED,

MAGNEMITE'S FRIEND'''

''Well, should we go, guys?'' Squirtle asked.

''Of course we should!'' I said astounded at the statement. ''We should never turn

our back on someone who needs help!'' I then ran off into the distance.

''Wait, you impulsive furball!'' Riolu called. ''You don't know where it is!''

***Squirtle's p.o.v***

We arrived at our destination, Thunderwave Cave. The outside of the cave was

very rocky. At the entrance, two Magnemite were waiting for us.

''OH, YOU ARE HERE. BZBZBZZ!'' one of the Magnemite said. ''MY FRIENDS ARE IN

THIS CAVERN. BZBZBZZ. THEY SHOULD BE ON B6F. PLEASE SAVE THEM! BZBZBZZT!''

''You can count on us,'' Riolu replied. ''Let's go.'' He issued us to follow him into the

cave. The cave was crawling with Electric-type Pokémon (my worst nightmare!) such as Voltorb.

Thankfully, they weren't too bad to deal with since my team mates covered me well. On B6F, we

reached the end of the dungeon and saw the two stuck Magnemites.

''There they are!'' I yelled. We ran up to them.

''PLEASE HELP US,'' one of the Magnemite said sadly.

''Don't worry,'' Anthony said. ''O.K. now everyone be careful with them.'' Riolu and I

grabbed the Magnemite gently and with the help of Anthony and Zorua, we safely escorted them out of

the cave. Once we reached the entrance, the Magnemite's bodies separated.

''OUR BODIES SEPARATED, BZBZBZZ. REJOICE! BZBZBZZT!'' one cried. The

Magnemites all spun with happiness.

''BE THANKFUL YOU TWO!'' one of the Magnemite said to his friends.

''YOU ARE OUR HEROES,'' said a Magnemite. ''THANK YOU. BZBZBZZ.'' We then went

home for the night.

''We did well once again, gang,'' Riolu said. ''We'll be on our way to fame in no

time!''

''It's not the fame that's important,'' Anthony corrected. ''It's the satisfaction of

helping others that keeps me going.''

''I know,'' Riolu sneered. ''You don't need to be my father.''

''Uh, sorry,'' Anthony said. ''Good night.''

''Good night,'' Zorua and I answered. Riolu remained quiet as we walked home.

***Anthony's p.o.v***

That night, the dream returned.

''Again? Am I dreaming again…?'' I asked myself. The feminine figure appeared. ''That

figure again!'' I cried. ''Huh? She's talking to me? I can't hear it clearly. What's it saying?'' Suddenly, I felt

an earthquake. ''Oh no, an earthquake! And it's bad! This feels real but…'' The dream then ended. The

next morning, I woke and looked around my house for any damage from the earthquake. ''Hope the

others are all right,'' I said.

''Uh…hello?'' a voice said. I looked around the room to see that no one else was there.

''Hello? Uhh…You are Anthony…Aren't you?''

''Yes,'' I said. ''Who are you? Wherever you are.''

''Oh! You can't see us, of course!'' the voice said. ''How very rude of us!'' All of a sudden,

a Dugtrio burst out of the ground in the middle of my room. ''We are pleased to meet you. We are

Dugtrio.''

''H-h-hi,'' I said nervously.

''Last night, during the earthquake, our child Diglett was attacked and whisked away to

the peak of a tall mountain,'' Dugtrio elaborated. ''We couldn't possibly climb somewhere so high up.

That is why we must call upon you for help, Anthony. Our Diglett was attacked by a Pokémon named

Skarmory. It's a vilely vicious ruffian! Please do be careful. Please, we need your help! We must go!''

Dugtrio then disappeared.

''Well, it's not every day someone shows up in your house and asks you for help,'' I said

to myself. '''I'll go get the others.'' I made my way out of my base. Once outside, my friends joined me.

''Hey Anthony,'' Zorua said.

''Hello, guys,'' I responded. ''Listen I just got a mission request.''

''So soon?'' Riolu asked surprised. ''From who?''

'' Us!'' Dugtrio said as they popped out of the ground surprising all of us. ''Our child,

Diglett, was kidnapped! He was taken to Mt. Steel's summit! Please, we need your help! Bye-bye!''

Dugtrio then vanished beneath the ground.

''O.K.'' Riolu spoke up. ''Let's go.'' All of us headed to Mt. Steel to rescue little Diglett

and face against, so far, our biggest challenge.

***Larraine's p.o.v***

''Well, there're no signs of a break in, attack, or murder,'' an officer said.

''Is there anything else we can do?'' I asked.

''Well, all we can do now is patrol the area for your boy friend,'' the officer answered.

''And if we do find him, we'll let you know and bring him back safe. Has your boy friend had any issues

with drugs or alcohol?''

''No!'' I replied upset that they would think of that.

'We just need all the information we can get,'' the officer reacted.

''I'm sorry,'' I replied. ''I'm just really worried about him.'' I started to cry again.

''Hey,'' the officer said kindly. ''Don't worry. I'm sure he's safe and sound. We'll find

him.'' The officer winked before he left. I tried to smile back. When the police left, I walked back into the

apartment sobbing again.

''Oh Anthony,'' I said. ''I hope you ARE safe and that I didn't do anything to upset

you.'' I went to my bedroom to get ready for bed and rest my already weary mind.


	4. Chapter 4

**Let's Go Team Wildfire!**

**Chapter Four: Flaming Steel and Diglett Feet**

*Zorua's p.o.v*

We soon arrived at Mt. Steel. The mountain was very tall, dark, and intimidating.

''Well, here it is. Mt. Steel,'' Riolu said with a hint of fear.

''You guys nervous?'' Anthony asked. ''That Skarmory sounds like a monster.''

''Of course not!'' Riolu answered hiding his fear. ''I'm never afraid. Let's just go.''

We entered the cave. The cave was very treacherous. It was filled with very dangerous and powerful

Pokémon, most notably Steel-types like Lairon. By the time we reached the eighth floor, we were

already tuckered out. ''L-lets…keep…g-going,'' Riolu said showing signs of fatigue.

''Riolu, we can't,'' Squirtle said. ''We need rest.''

''Oh, so you want to just quit?!'' Riolu yelled.

''Riolu, he didn't say 'quit', I said. ''We should rest. I have a feeling that Skarmory

is on the next floor. If we go like this, Skarmory will surely beat us and Diglett will still be trapped.'' Riolu

was getting really frustrated at our ''weakness.''

''You bums can sit here and rest if you want!'' Riolu shouted. ''I'm going to show

you all that I can handle Skarmory in any condition.'' Riolu then stormed off into the cave.

''Riolu!'' Anthony yelled. But Riolu was too far away to hear him. ''Why does he

have to act like that?''

''It's his parents,'' I replied. ''They've trained him to believe that he needs to

push himself all the time in order to be the best and that wanting to rest shows weakness.''

''Oh,'' Anthony responded. ''Poor Riolu.''

***Riolu's p.o.v***

_I couldn't believe that those weaklings wanted to rest!_ I thought as I ran to the

summit. _They just don't want to be the best. Well fine. If they want to act like wimps, then I'll take the _

_glory for myself! I'll be considered the best. Hey, I could even be a one Pokémon rescue team if I _

_wanted_. When I got to the summit, I looked around for signs of Diglett.

''Diglett!'' I called. ''Where are you?''

''O-over here!'' I heard a voice respond. I looked ahead and saw little Diglett

shaking in fear.

''Don't worry!'' I yelled back. ''I'm coming for you!'' I attempted to approach Diglett.

''Wait!'' Diglett said. ''There's-''

''Nothing to fear, Diglett,'' I cut him off. ''I knooooooow!'' I looked down and saw a

deep, deep chasm separating Diglett and I. ''How am I going to get Diglett out of here?''

''You won't be!'' I heard a harsh voice respond. I looked around and a great creature

flew by me causing me to fly backwards. As I tried to get up, a giant clawed foot placed itself on me

holding me down. I looked and saw it was Skarmory herself. ''Who are you?!'' Skarmory demanded.

''I-I-I'm Riolu,'' I said straining to talk with Skarmory's foot on top of me. ''L-Leader

of Team Wildfire. I've come to rescue Diglett from your mountain.''

''I don't think so!'' Skarmory squawked. ''This little runt caused to agitating

earthquakes. Therefore, he must be punished like the child that he is!''

''It would take more than one Diglett or heck, even an entire colony of Digletts to

cause these earthquakes!'' I tried to shout. ''It's all the natural disasters going on!''

''SILENCE!'' Skarmory screeched. ''If you want to try and save this brat, you'll suffer

the consequences as well!'' I felt the pressure of Skarmory's foot growing stronger. _This is the end for _

_me,_ I thought. _I'm sorry Anthony, Zorua, Squirtle, mom, dad, Diglett, and Dugtrio. I've let you all down._

I was prepared to die when suddenly…

''HEY!'' a familiar voice yelled. A stream of fire whizzed by Skarmory's head almost

hitting her causing her to lose her grip on me. ''No one kills one of our friends!'' It was Anthony, Squirtle,

and Zorua! They came to save me! I felt absolutely touched. So much so, I felt tears welling up in my

eyes. Zorua ran up to me.

''Are you O.K.?'' Zorua asked.

''Now, that you guys are here,'' I replied weakly.

''You're hurt,'' Zorua said. ''Here, eat this.'' He placed an Oran Berry in my mouth

and helped me eat it. All my injuries were instantly gone and I felt a surge of energy course through me.

I leapt up and got into battle position.

''You ready guys?'' I said.

''You know it!'' Anthony said.

''Let's rock!'' Squirtle added in.

''Let's save Diglett!'' Zorua cried.

***Squirtle's p.o.v***

Our battle with Skarmory was a long and grueling one. If only because not many of our

attacks did much to her and because she was fast. Riolu began the battle with Quick Attack which

caught Skarmory off guard, but Riolu just bounced of her metal body. Skarmory reacted with Sand

Attack which coated the battle field. Thankfully, Zorua's and Anthony's sharp hearing helped us know

where Skarmory was going to charge from. My Water Gun did decent damage to Skarmory, but she still

kept kicking.

''Air Cutter!'' Skarmory cried. Skarmory then started flinging boomerangs made from

the wind. I quickly used Iron Defense which protected me from the attack but my team mates had to

dodge the attack. Zorua countered with Night Daze which temporarily blinded Skarmory leaving

Anthony the time to use Flame Wheel which really did a number on Skarmory.

''I…w-w-will NOT BE DEFEATED!'' Skarmory cried eager to continue the fight.

''Skarmory, stop!'' Anthony said. ''We don't want to fight you. Just release Diglett and

we can end this!''

''QUIET YOU BRAT!'' Skarmory screeched. ''We will fight until one of us dies!''

Skarmory was starting to wobble and then collapsed. Knocked out but not dead.

''Now that that's over,'' I said wiping sweat from my forehead, ''let's rescue Diglett.''

''How?'' Riolu asked. ''That chasm is too wide for any of us to cross.'' Then, the two

Magnemite from Thunderwave Cave appeared.

''Hey you two!'' Zorua said surprised. ''What're you guys doing here?''

'' WE GOT WORD OF THIS,'' one Magnemite replied in their trademark robotic tone.

''WE CAN RESCUE DIGLETT FROM THE SKY. BZBZBZZ!'' The Magnemite went over to Diglett and slowly

lifted him up. We then made our way to the base.

''Oh…I was very scared,'' Diglett said relieved. ''Maybe because I was somewhere up so

high. My feet still feel like they're walking on air.'' We just stood there awkwardly_. Feet?_ I thought.

''Anyways,'' Riolu said obviously shaking himself out of thinking about Diglett feet.

''What's important is that your safe.''

''Oh good!'' a voice cried. ''You're safe!'' Dugtrio then rose from the ground surprising

everyone. _I hate it when he does that,_ I thought.

''Papa!'' Diglett cried happily.

''Thank you all so much,'' Dugtrio said to us.

''Don't just thank us,'' Anthony said. ''If it wasn't for Magnemite and Magnemite, we

wouldn't be able to save your son.''

''Oh, how rude of us!'' Dugtrio said as they turned to Magnemite. ''Thank you as well!''

''IT WAS NOTHING,'' a Magnemite responded. ''AS POKEMON, WE MUST PROTECT

EACH OTHER IN TIMES OF NEED.'' Dugtrio and Diglett then vanished into the ground.

''You two were amazing back there,'' Zorua said to the Magnemite. ''Why don't you join

our team?'' All of us agreed.

''RESCUE TEAM,'' a Magnemite said. ''THAT SOUNDS FUN! BZBZBZZT.''

''BUT IF YOU NEED US TO RUSH OVER TO RESCUES,'' the other Magnemite said. ''WE

NEED A PLACE TO LIVE THAT'S CLOSE BY.''

''I don't know where that might be,'' Riolu responded.

''OH,'' the Magnemite said sadly. ''THEN WE CAN'T JOIN YOU.'' They floated off into the

distance.

''Where can we get them a place to live?'' Anthony asked.

''I heard of the Wigglytuff Club in Pokémon Square,'' Zorua answered. ''It should be open

tomorrow.''

''O.K., let's go visit it tomorrow,'' Riolu said.

''By the way,'' Anthony asked. ''What's with all the earthquakes around these parts?''

''We've been having many natural disasters happening in the past few months,'' I responded.

''And it's not just earthquakes. We've had tornadoes, hurricanes, tsunamis, and volcanic eruptions

almost everywhere! And as a result, it's made the local Pokémon on edge and vicious.''

''That's why rescue teams have been working overtime,'' Riolu added in.

''It must be pretty scary to even step out of your home,'' I said.

''Thankfully, there're great rescue teams out there to prevent too many casualties,'' Zorua

said.

''That's good,'' I said relieved. We then said our good byes and we each went home to get

some sleep.


	5. Chapter 5

**Let's God Team Wildfire!**

**Chapter Five: The Race to Rescue Metapod: Part One**

***Anthony's p.o.v***

I was asleep that night when the mysterious dream occurred again.

''Again?'' I asked myself. Then, the feminine figure appeared again. Only this

time, it was clearer. It wasn't a human woman; it was a Pokémon though I couldn't tell what it was. It

was tall and thin. It had a long white dress and green hair with red eyes. ''You're back again, eh?'' I

asked the figure. ''Huh? Human? My role?'' The figure then started to disappear. ''No!'' I called. ''Please

tell me more!'' But, she already vanished and I began drifting off. The next morning, I woke up with so

many questions in my head. _Who was that Pokémon?_ I wondered. _What'd she mean by my role?_ I

walked outside and was greeted by my friends.

''Good morning, Anthony!'' Squirtle said cheerfully. My friends then looked at

me with puzzled looks on their faces. ''What's wrong?'' Squirtle asked.

''Haven't woken up yet?'' Zorua teased.

''No,'' I replied. ''I've just been having strange dreams. A mysterious Pokémon

appears in my dreams and she told me about 'my role.''' My friends were even more confused.

''Say, Anthony,'' Squirtle said. ''You said you were a human, right?''

''Yes,'' I replied.

''Well, maybe, the dreams are connected to how you became a Pokémon,''

Squirtle added. ''What d'you want to do? Become human again or remain a Pokémon and be with us?'' _I _

_hate these kinds of situations,_ I thought to myself. _On one hand, I'd really like to be a human again and _

_see my family again, but I've had a great time performing rescues with my friends. I couldn't hurt their _

_feelings._

''Well?'' Riolu pressured. ''What'll it be?'' I was starting to sweat.

''I don't know,'' I finally answered.

''Quite a dilemma, huh?'' Zorua asked. ''We hope you'll stay with us. We like

having you on our team!'' That added to my guilt. ''Well, enough about that. Let's go see Wigglytuff.''

We marched off to the Wigglytuff Club when Riolu spoke up.

''Hey, guys?'' Riolu asked. ''I'm sorry about the way I treated you all yesterday. It

was wrong to yell at you guys. If you guys didn't rest, Skarmory would've killed us.''

''It's alright, Riolu,'' I said putting a paw on his shoulder. ''The important thing is

that we rescued Diglett and that we made it back safely. Just understand your limitations.''

''That's right,'' Squirtle added. ''Besides, we're a team. We must look out for each

other.''

''Agreed!'' Zorua also added.

''Thanks, guys,'' Riolu said. ''You're the best friends a Pokémon could ever want.''

''What amazing friendship!'' a disturbingly feminine male voice said. ''C'mon over,

boys! I've got a special offer for a team like you!'' We walked over to where the voice called us over. We

arrived at a counter with a Wigglytuff manning it. ''Friends are my treasures!'' the Wigglytuff beamed.

''Welcome to Wigglytuff Club—a circle of friends! In admiration of your friendship, I'll give you one

Friend Area for free!'' The two Magnemite from yesterday then came up to us.

''IF YOU'RE GIVING FRIEND AREAS AWAY, CAN YOU GRANT THIS TEAM ACCESS TO

THE POWER PLANT FRIEND AREA?'' a Magnemite asked.

''Why certainly,'' Wigglytuff replied. ''Any friends of this team are friends of mine!

Let's do it!'' Wigglytuff began to sing and when suddenly, a light flashed. ''Congratulations! You may

now access the Power Plant.''

''I KNOW MY FRIEND REJECTED YOUR OFFER TO JOIN YOUR RESCUE TEAM, BUT

MAY HE JOIN YOU NOW?'' asked the other Magnemite asked.

''Of course!'' Riolu replied. ''It's never too late to join Team Wildfire.''

''HOORAY!'' the other Magnemite cried. ''NOW I CAN GO ON RESCUES! LET ME

KNOW IF YOU NEED ME.'' The two Magnemites flew off.

''Here's your Friend Area map,'' Wigglytuff said handing us a piece of paper. ''Happy

rescuing boys!''

''Thanks!'' all of us replied. We began to make our way to the base when we saw a big

crowd in the middle of the square where an argument could be heard.

''What's all the commotion?'' I asked. We noticed a Jumpluff talking with two Nuzleaf

and a Shiftry.

''Please help my friend!'' the Jumpluff pleaded. ''Please, I need help!''

''Forget it,'' the Shiftry replied coldly. ''We're not about to work for that.''

''But my friend needs a gust of wind!'' the Jumpluff begged.

''Excuse me,'' Zorua said to a Lombre. ''What's going on?''

''Isn't it obvious?'' Lombre replied. ''Jumpluff's begging for a rescue mission but not

finding any luck. See the guy in the middle with the pointy nose? He's Shiftry. He has his own rescue

team. But, his team is greedy and they won't work without a royal cash reward.''

''That is so evil!'' I said. I was about to step in and tell that jerk off when suddenly.

''Wait!'' the voice called. An Alakazam, a Charizard, and a Tyranitar walked up to

Shiftry's team. The other Pokémon in the square were in awe like they were gods.

''Oh! Wh-What do you want?'' Shiftry barked at the Alakazam.

''Hey,'' the Alakazam replied. ''Rather coldhearted aren't you? To save Jumpluff's friend,

a strong wind is needed. Your leafy fans can whip up powerful winds. It's an easy matter for you. Help

that Pokémon out.'' All of the Pokémon in the square stared at Shiftry as he got flustered.

''Tch! O.K, we'll do it.'' Shiftry responded and then stormed off with the Nuzleafs close

behind.

''Who're they?'' I asked Lombre.

''You don't know?!'' Lombre asked in surprise. ''That's Team A.C.T! They're the most

famous rescue team around these parts. That's Charizard. His Flamethrower can melt mountains. That's

Tyranitar. He takes great pride in his armored body and amazing strength. And that's the leader,

Alakazam. He doesn't like physical attacks and thus, only uses his psychic powers in battle. He's

endowed with an amazing brain and an I.Q. of five-thousand. Apparently, he's memorized everything

that's happened in the world.''

''Really?'' Zorua asked. _I wonder if he can help me become human again,_ I wondered.

''Th-Thanks,'' Jumpluff said to Alakazam.

''No need for thanks,'' Alakazam relied. ''It is only natural that you get help. If anyone

turns you down again, come see me. Take care.'' Team A.C.T then came marching towards our spot as

the crowd cheered. As they passed by us, Alakazam suddenly stopped and looked towards me causing

my friends to back up in fear.

''What's wrong?'' the normally confident Riolu asked.

''What's up?'' Charizard asked Alakazam.

''It's fine. Nothing,'' Alakazam finally said. Team A.C.T then walked off. _That's weird,_ I

thought to myself. _I wonder if…_

''Anthony?'' Squirtle asked. ''You O.K.?''

''Oh, yeah,'' I responded. We then went on our way to do more missions.

***Unknown p.o.v***

''Not if I can help it,'' I snickered. I then walked off to plot.

***Larraine's p.o.v***

I was out at our local coffee shop with my friends Rachel and Cassidy. I needed someone to

talk to about the disappearance of Anthony.

''I don't know why he disappeared,'' I said solemnly with my face in my hands.

''Did you guys have a fight about anything earlier?'' Cassidy asked with her Shinx, Scamp, in

her lap.

''No,'' I replied. ''We always got along. We've never fought before.''

''I wouldn't be surprised if he ran off with another woman,'' Rachel said.

''What?'' I asked in a stern tone.

''Well, most guys are like that,'' Rachel replied. ''They stick around you for awhile and then they

move on to the next poor girl. Just last week, my sister's boy-''

''ANTHONY WOULD NEVER YOU DO SOMETHING LIKE THAT TO ME YOU-'' I screamed at the top

of my lungs. I stopped realizing I just yelled at my best friends. My friends and everyone around us

stared at me in shock. ''Rachel, I'm sorry,'' I responded sincerely. ''It's just that…'' My eyes watered. ''I

got to go.'' I ran off to the apartment tears streaming down my face. I ran into my room sobbing.

''Pika?'' my Pikachu, Lightning, asked in concern.

''My heart is broken, buddy,'' I sobbed. ''Why would he do this to me? WHY?!'' Lightning put his

paw on my heard and nuzzled my head trying to comfort me. ''Thanks, Lightning. You're my one friend

who understands.'' I laid there weeping until I couldn't anymore.

***Anthony's p.o.v***

Two days later, I woke up to check the mail to find many mission requests in the mailbox.

''Hey, Anthony!'' Zorua called. ''Any requests?''

''Yeah, lots!'' I called back. My friends came running up in excitement but, before we could go

through the requests, we heard a sinister voice.

''Is this the place?'' the voice asked. ''Where that team named Wildfire is based?'' We turned

around and saw a Gengar, an Ekans, and a Medicham coming towards our base.

''There's nothing here,'' the Ekans said.

''Depressing, isn't it,'' the Medicham added.

''Keh! Who'd run a rescue team from a dump like this?'' the Gengar asked. ''Unbelievable!''

''Who're you creeps?'' Riolu asked starting to get annoyed.

''Oh, over there! A mailbox!'' Medicham sang. The trio then surrounded our mailbox.

''Yeah!'' Gengar said in delight. ''Check it out!''

''Now wait just a second!'' Squirtle said angrily.

''What do you think you're doing?!'' Zorua barked.

''Yessss!'' Ekans hissed. ''Rescue job offers!''

''Oo-la-la!'' Medicham said. ''Isn't that rather tasty?''

''We'll have them all!'' Gengar said. The shady bunch started to ransack our mailbox.

''Stop!'' I yelled. ''Those were meant for us!'' I lunged at Gengar.

''Butt out you!'' Gengar said pushing me back into my team. ''It doesn't matter who does it!''

''We're a rescue team too, I'll have you know!'' Medicham said.

''But all we ever get up to is no good,'' Ekans added. ''Wanna know how it works? If we have the cover

of a rescue team, we can get away with so much more!''

''What are you talking about?'' Riolu asked.

''We have our eyes on world domination,'' Medicham sang evilly.

''World domination?!'' Zorua asked surprised.

''You heard right!'' Gengar responded laughing. ''That's why we're raking in the cash and adding to our

gang. The world will be ours! The rescue team of evil! Team Meanies is who we are!''

''Team Meanies?'' I said starting to laugh. ''That's the kind of name a kindergartener would come up

with!'' My friends and I started laughing hysterically.

''Silence!'' Gengar commanded. ''No one disrespects our gang!'' We just ignored him and continued to

laugh. Gengar then used Night Shade on one of the base windows to shut us up. ''You won't be laughing

when we crush you like Weedle,'' Gengar glared.

''See you around!'' Medicham sang as they ran off. Riolu then inspected our mailbox.

''Shoot!'' Riolu said. ''They took everything!'' Suddenly, a Pelipper dropped off more mail and flew off.

''What luck!'' Riolu cried happily.

''But those guys,'' I said with my blood boiling. ''They'd better not try anything else when we see them

again.'' To take our mind off of Team Meanies, we proceeded with our rescue mission that's just

been delivered.

***Riolu's p.o.v***

The next day, our team met up again when we had another visitor, only this time, it was a

friendly face.

''Anthony? Riolu? Zorua? Squirtle?'' the familiar voice asked. We turned to see Caterpie crawling

towards us.

''Hey, Caterpie,'' Squirtle said. ''How've ya been?''

''Please!'' Caterpie cried. ''Please help my friend!''

''What's the matter?'' Anthony asked.

''I was playing with my friend, Metapod,'' Caterpie replied. ''But Metapod got lost in the woods.

He's still lost out there.''

''Oh, I see, I see!'' an all too familiar voice replied. ''That does sound bad! Kekeke!''

''Hey, what do you think you're doing?!'' Squirtle yelled.

''Have no fear!'' Gengar said to Caterpie. ''We're here to save your chum Metapod.''

''Hold on!'' Zorua yelled. ''Caterpie came to us for help!''

''Keh! You think you can do this rescue with your amateur-level skills?'' Gengar sneered.

''What'd you say!'' I yelled furiously.

''It doesn't matter who does the rescuing, see?'' Gengar said to me. ''The guy that does the rescuing

gets to be the hero. Listen Caterpie. How about we do this? How about you give the reward to the team

that brings back your chum first?''

''But, I…I don't have any money…'' Caterpie replied.

''Oh, don't worry about that, my little friend!'' Gengar said patting Caterpie on the head. ''I'm sure we

can persuade your parents to reward us with interest afterward, kekeh!'' Anthony growled in anger at

that response.

''Oh yeah,'' Gengar added. ''You can even join our team. There's an offer you can't refuse. When you

join us, Caterpie; we'll let you be a big wheel in Team Meanies, kekekeke! That's the deal, Riolu. The first

to rescue wins!'' Gengar then turned towards Medicham and Ekans. ''Come one, move!'' Gengar

commanded. ''Let's get this done, already!'' Caterpie sat there speechless.

''Don't worry, Caterpie,'' I said. ''We'll rescue your friend first. C'mon guys, after them!'' We then

made a dash for the Sinister Woods. We arrived at a very dark forest.

''So, this is Sinister Woods,'' Squirtle said.

''Looks really…sinister,'' Anthony said redundantly.

''We gotta get in there and save Metapod,'' I said to the guys. ''Let's go.'' We headed into the woods

ready to save Metapod at all costs.

**To be continued…**


	6. Chapter 6

**Let's Go Team Wildfire!**

**Chapter Six: The Race to Rescue Metapod: Part Two**

***Anthony's p.o.v***

The Sinister Woods was crawling (literally and metaphorically) with Bug-type Pokémon.

Though most of them weren't that bad, the one that worried me the most was Scyther. Its fast,

powerful, and cut-throat. Squirtle's shell even took a beating to the Mantis Pokémon! Thankfully,

Anthony knew some powerful Fire-type attacks and could keep them at bay. All of the Pokémon here

have been driven mad by all the natural disasters, so it's not really their fault. After awhile, we reached

the end of the dungeon and saw Team Meanies looking around for Metapod.

''Yoo-hoo! Metapod!'' Gengar said with a fake caring voice. ''We're here to rescue

you!''

''Hey! Gengar!'' Riolu called out.

''You four, again!'' Gengar said angrily. ''Can't you just get lost and let us rescue

Metapod?''

''Not a chance!'' Riolu replied. ''Think Caterpie would join a group of bullies like you?''

''If he doesn't, then we'll just hold his chum Metapod hostage,'' Gengar said evilly.

''Well, let's just have a battle to decide who'll get to Metapod,'' Riolu replied.

''You're on!'' Gengar called out. Gengar started the battle with Night Shade, though we

all jumped out of the way. Riolu and Medicham then got locked into a fist fight. Riolu attempted to grab

Medicham and use Force Palm, however Medicham grabbed Riolu's paw using Detect and flung him into

a tree with Confusion. Squirtle got wrapped by Ekans suddenly and was being squeezed by the Snake

Pokémon. Ekans looked like he was hungry and even tried to eat him!

''Squirtle!'' I called out to my friend. I looked away expecting the worst, but I then heard

Ekans howl in pain. I looked and saw that he hurt his teeth on Squirtle's shell. That got a laugh out of me

until I got slugged in the face by Gengar's Shadow Punch.

''C'mon, little puppy,'' Gengar said mockingly. ''Fight me!''

''With pleasure!'' I replied. I attempted to use Bite but Gengar's eyes then started to glow

red. I suddenly felt a sharp pain course through me. ''Wh-What are you doing?!'' I demanded in pain.

''I used Curse,'' Gengar replied. ''You'll slowly lose energy until you're knocked out! Oh, and it

looks like your team is in trouble.'' I turned my head to see my team in danger at the hands of Ekans (in

his, case lack thereof) and Medicham. ''And just to seal the deal,'' Gengar said happily. ''Hypnosis!''

Gengar started waving his hands in front of my face in a rhythm causing me to feel drowsy. We can't let

down Caterpie, I thought. I need to do something and FAST! I quickly used Flamethrower in Gengar's

face and thus, knocking him out. I turned and did the same to Medicham and Ekans defeating the evil

team.

''Anthony, you did it!'' Squirtle said. ''Are you alright?''

''Yeah,'' I replied weakly. ''Just feel a little weak. Now where's Metapod?''

''Um, excuse me?'' a nasally voice asked. Metapod then came out of the woods. ''Did you

maybe come looking for me?''

''You must be Metapod,'' I said. ''Let's go home. Caterpie was worried about you.''

''Yay!'' Metapod cheered. ''I was scared so I kept my shell hardened…and waited and waited.

Thank you!'' We made our way out of the forest and towards home to Caterpie's welcome.

''This is great!'' Caterpie cried with tears in his eyes. ''Welcome back, Metapod!''

''Thank you, Caterpie!'' Metapod responded.

''And thank you, Team Wildfire!'' Caterpie said to us with sparkles in his eyes. ''But, I don't

have any money.''

''It's alright,'' Zorua said. ''It's more important that your friend is safe.''

''Cool!'' Caterpie said with admiration. ''You guys are even cooler than I thought. I want to go on

rescues when I grow up!''

''That's great,'' I said. ''Chase that dream!''

''Say, Anthony,'' Squirtle said. ''We should make this base a sight to see! Let's rebuild it.''

''I like that idea,'' I replied. The others agreed. Caterpie and Metapod went on their way home. I

then bid my friends a farewell for the night. ''It's things like that that keep me going,'' I said to myself. ''I

love children. I've always wanted to work with them.''

***Zorua's p.o.v***

My friends and I met Anthony back at the base the next morning. We thought it would be

another normal day of rescues but little did we know of what was to come.

''Umm…Hello?'' a voice asked nervously. We turned to see Jumpluff behind us. ''Is rescue team

Wildfire here?''

''That's us!'' Riolu said triumphantly. ''Wait, you're that Jumpluff that was in Pokémon Square a

few days ago, aren't you?''

''Yes,'' she replied quietly. ''I am.''

''Did Shiftry save your friend?'' Squirtle asked.

''I don't know,'' Jumpluff answered. ''He never came back. My friend got stuck between some rocks

and we Jumpluff can't go anywhere without the wind. And, even though the skies are filled with

thunderclouds, there're no winds blowing.''

''Nothing?'' I asked. ''Strange.''

''Shiftry's fans can whip up powerful winds,'' Jumpluff continued. ''I figured that he could save my

Friend, but he hasn't returned yet.''

''Doesn't sound like that hard of a mission,'' Anthony said. ''I wonder what's keeping him? Let's go

find Shiftry.''

''Lead the way, Jumpluff,'' Riolu said.

''Really?'' Jumpluff asked. ''Oh, thank you!'' We followed Jumpluff to a place called Silent Chasm, an

area filled with steep cliffs and dark clouds. ''My friend is lost in this canyon. I'm sorry to burden you,

but please save my friend and Shiftry.''

''You can count on us,'' all of us said together. We were about to head into the cavern when

Jumpluff stopped us.

''Wait!'' Jumpluff said.

''What's up?'' I asked.

''I forgot to mention this but…'' Jumpluff paused. ''It's said that an amazing monster lives here.''

''M-M-M-MONSTER?''Squirtle and I asked.

''Aw, come on,'' Anthony said. ''There's no such thing as monsters.''

''Yeah, we'll be fine,'' Riolu reassured. ''It's only a myth. Let's go.''

''Owowowow!'' Squirtle yelled. ''My stomach hurts!''

''Oh no!'' Jumpluff exclaimed.

''My stomach hurts, too!'' I added (secretly feigning pain). Anthony and Riolu just rolled their eyes and

dragged us into the cavern.

''We'll be right back,'' Anthony said with a smile. Jumpluff just stared at us with a confused look.

As we made our way to the cavern's end, we met the other Jumpluff shivering in fear.

''Jumpluff!'' Squirtle exclaimed. ''What's wrong? Are you O.K.?''

''I'm fine but…'' Jumpluff said as he pointed to a badly wounded Shiftry in the back of the cave. We ran

to the unconscious Pokémon.

''Shiftry! Wake up!'' Riolu said shaking him.

''Forget about me,'' Shiftry answered weakly. ''Get away from here!''

''Get…Get away from here?'' Anthony asked. ''What do you mean?'' Suddenly, the room went dark.

''Who turned out the lights?!'' Anthony exclaimed. We heard a screech which made my heart leap in my

chest.

''It's coming!'' Shiftry yelled.

''Move aside you!'' a rash voice shouted pushing us out of the way. ''He dared to disturb my sleep! I

have no mercy for meddlers! And that includes you!'' There was a blinding flash of light and when we

opened our eyes, we saw that Shiftry was gone and in his place, a giant yellow, spikey bird was flying in

the air.

''I-I-IT'S THE MONSTER!'' all of us screamed.

''I am no monster!'' the beast said. ''I am Zapdos! The embodiment of lightning! If you wish to save

Shiftry, then scale Mt. Thunder!'' Zapdos then flew off.

''So Zapdos is the legendary monster,'' Riolu said. We made our way back to the base where Jumpluff's

friend greeted us.

''Yay! Saved!'' Jumpluff said. ''I'm so happy!''

''Yes, but Shiftry has been taken away to Mt. Thunder,'' the rescued Jumpluff said.

''What exactly happened?'' I asked.

''Shiftry whipped up winds with his fans releasing me from the rock,'' Jumpluff started to explain. ''But,

the winds tore a thundercloud in two causing Zapdos to appear.''

''Did you say 'Zapdos'?'' a familiar voice asked. We turned to see Team A.C.T standing there.

''Alakazam!'' Riolu said surprised. The team approached us.

''Zapdos is one of the three legendary bird Pokémon,'' Alakazam elaborated. ''I heard it's been sleeping

for a long time.''

''So Shiftry woke it up?'' Anthony asked.

''No,'' Alakazam responded. ''Shiftry's winds were only a trigger. The absence of winds there was

unnatural. The many natural disasters must have caused Zapdos' rage. Shiftry must be saved.''

''But Zapdos won't be easy,'' Tyrannitar said to Alakazam. ''It's electric attacks are wicked nasty.''

''I know that,'' Alakazam replied. ''We must take caution.''

''We'll go, too!'' Anthony said. ''We'll help Shiftry!'' All of us stared at Anthony in shock.

''Huh?!'' Alakazam said in surprise. ''That is dangerous! Zapdos is too powerful for your skill level!''

''Anthony, you're crazy!'' Riolu said. ''You want to get us killed?!''

''Hey!'' Anthony shot back. ''We're not that weak! Zapdos doesn't scare me. Right guys?'' Anthony

asked referring to Squirtle and I.

''Uh…'' Squirtle and I replied.

''I'll be honest, Anthony,'' Squirtle said. ''Death isn't my idea of a good time.''

''I second that,'' I added.

''C'mon you guys!'' Anthony said frustrated. ''We can do anything together! Either you're with or I'll just

go alone!''

''Have you ever been hit by an electric blast?'' Charizard asked Anthony. ''It'll leave you stunned and

shaking!''

''I'll run rings around him,'' Anthony responded_. Yep,_ I thought. _You've lost it._

''Zapdos is wickedly tough,'' Tyrannitar stated. ''It might gobble you up for a snack! Can you handle

that?''

''We're a rescue team,''Anthony replied. ''I want to help Shiftry.''

''But, Shiftry's a jerk!'' I said.

''Like that's a good enough reason to let him suffer!'' Anthony shouted. ''What d'ya say?'' Anthony

asked Alakazam. Alakazam stood there silently.

''Fine,'' Alakazam replied. ''It seems you have courage._'' Or you're just stupid,_ I thought.

''Yes!'' Anthony exclaimed.

''Yay?'' Riolu, Squirtle, and I added.

''Our two teams will split up when we arrive at Mt. Thunder,'' Alakazam said. ''We will go when

we have geared up for battle. Knowing how powerful our opponent is, we have no choice but to be

cautious. Make your way to Mt. Thunder only when you are fully prepared. Our mission is to rescue

Shiftry! Let us find success!''

''This is gonna be exciting!'' Anthony said wagging his tail. ''Let's get ready!'' Anthony ran off to blow our

money on supplies.

''We're dead,'' I said.

''Yep,'' Riolu replied.

''Well,'' Squirtle said, ''Might as well get some sleep for tomorrow.'' We left for our homes to be rested

for tomorrow.


	7. Chapter 7

**Let's Go Team Wildfire!**

**Chapter Seven: Showdown on Mt. Thunder**

***Anthony's p.o.v***

I woke the next morning with a great sense of determination. We were actually going to fight a

legendary Pokémon on one of our missions! Needless to say, I was excited. Maybe the Growlithe's

sense of loyalty and instinct to protect others was over-taking my human senses. I met my friends

outside my base. They looked as worried as a father hoping his child will be born with no ill effects. We

didn't talk much on the way to Mt. Thunder. I understand that they were scared for how the battle will

turn out, but we can't turn our back on a Pokémon who needs help! We arrived at the foot of Mt.

Thunder.

''Well, here we are,'' I said. Dead trees littered the area. We looked at the peak and saw great

thunderclouds shrouding it. My heart raced with excitement. _Zapdos is waiting for us I bet,_ I thought.

''Well gang,'' I said to my friends. ''Shall we go on?'' My friends nodded silently. We entered the

mountain's caverns. The trek to the peak was long and grueling. Many Electric-type Pokemon called this

place their home and were not thrilled to see us trespassing. We tried to avoid as many fights as we

could in order to preserve our supplies for the battle with Zapdos. We saw no signs of Team A.C.T on our

way to the peak. Maybe they were either ahead of us or we were the first to arrive. After three hours of

climbing, we reached Mt. Thunder's peak. ''We made it,'' I said panting. There was no sign of Shiftry

anywhere. ''Hey Zapdos!'' I barked ''Where are ya?! We're here to rescue Shiftry!'' The giant bird flew

out of the clouds and landed right in front of us.

''So, you actually came,'' the beast mocked. ''Most impressive.''

''Zapdos!'' Riolu finally spoke up. ''We don't wanna have to fight you! If you release Shiftry, we

can go our separate ways!''

''Silence!'' Zapdos shouted. ''I came here to fight you and I will not except cowardice! Have at

you!'' Zapdos began the fight with Thunder. We scattered to avoid the bolt which would've hit us from

above. Squirtle fired a Water Pulse attack but Zapdos was quick to dodge it and counter with Drill Peck

which almost skewered Squirtle but thankfully, it got his side. Riolu snuck around Zapdos when he

wasn't looking and used Quick Attack. However, Zapdos' hard body made it look like someone trying to

punch a brick wall. Zapdos slapped Riolu with hid wing (not Wing Attack) which sent Riolu flying back

and about to fall off the mountain. To get Zapdos' attention, Zorua used a Gravelrock which hit Zapdos in

the back of the head giving Riolu time to regain balance. Zapdos was infuriated by the attack and zapped

Zorua with a blast of Thunder. Zorua howled in pain and Zorua became a twitching mess. Zapdos was

then moved in to finish the job.

''No!'' I heard Squirtle yell. Squirtle charged at Zapdos with Skull Bash. The hit made Zapdos fly

backwards but he soon gained composure. Zapdos suddenly swooped and grabbed Squirtle, Zorua, and

Riolu.

''What're you doing with them?!'' I demanded to know. Zapdos didn't respond and just dropped

them over a cliff. ''NO!'' I screamed as I ran towards the cliff. I looked for them, but they were gone. _This _

_is all my fault,_ I thought as tears welled up in my eyes_. I never should've opened my big mouth and let _

_Team A.C.T handle Zapdos._ I then remembered that Zapdos was there and I became filled with rage.

''You'll PAY for that!'' I screamed. I lunged at Zapdos and used Bite. Zapdos screeched in pain and shook

me off by discharging electricity. _Charizard…was…right,_ I thought. _Zapdos' electric attacks are strong._

***Alakazam's p.o.v***

My team and I finished our preparations and went towards Mt. Thunder_. I hope Team Wildfire _

_is alright, _I thought.

''Alakazam!'' Charizard said to me. ''Look!'' He pointed to the entrance of Mt. Thunder. There, at Mt.

Thunder's foot, was Squirtle, Zorua, and Riolu. They were lying on the ground charred, wounded, and

barely alive.

''What happened to you boys?'' Tyranitar asked Squirtle.

''Z-Z-Zapdos t-tossed us of the…cliff,'' Squirtle replied weakly. ''Anthony's still up there.''

''We need to hurry,'' I stated. ''Grab the boys and follow me.'' Charizard and Tyranitar picked up the

boys gently and followed close behind me.

***Anthony's p.o.v***

Zapdos and I were still fighting which was wearing both of us out. I felt incredibly weak and felt

that I could drop at any moment. Zapdos started charging up Thunder which would spell my doom. _I _

_need to finish this fight,_ I thought. I started charging up a fire attack. Zapdos released Thunder and I

released a Fire Blast which caused a great explosion sending me backwards into a rock. I heard a

gruesome crack as I collided. Zapdos approached me and I was prepared to die. However, Zapdos

suddenly collapsed. I heard footsteps and saw Squirtle, Zorua, and Riolu being carried up the stairs by

Team A.C.T. When they saw that I knocked out Zapdos, their mouthes dropped.

''Y-Y-You knocked out Zapdos?!'' Charizard asked in a flabbergasted tone.

''I g-g-guess so,'' I said with a smile as I tried to get up. But, I yelped in pain when I felt a sharp pain

in my side. ''I th-th-think a rib is broken.'' Everyone came to my side and Alakazam used Heal Pulse as he

put a hand on my side. I felt the bone move back in place. ''Thanks,'' I said. We all ate some Oran Berries

to restore our energy. Zapdos suddenly got back up causing all of us to get ready for battle.

''You want more?'' Charizard cried. ''I'll take you on!''

''Enough!'' Zapdos responded. ''That's enough fighting. You kids impressed me with your skills. But,

next time, things won't be so easy. You can have Shiftry back.'' Zapdos flew into the sky and Shiftry

suddenly appeared in a pillar of light. We quickly ran over to Shiftry's side.

''Shiftry,'' Alakazam said. ''Are you alright?'' Shiftry started to wake up.

''Yeah,'' Shiftry replied. ''Somehow, I am.''

''I'm glad you're safe,'' I said smiling.

''That was an eye-opener,'' Tyranitar said to me. ''Driving off that Zapdos.''

''I agree,'' Charizard added. ''You're awfully strong for a plain Growlithe. ''

''I sensed it when we first met,'' Alakazam spoke. ''Perhaps, you aren't a Pokémon, are you?'' That

statement made my heart skip a beat.

''Wow!'' Squirtle exclaimed. ''How can you tell that?!''

''But, you're right,'' I said. ''I'm not a Pokémon. I'm a human.''

''What?!'' Shiftry exclaimed.

''A human?!'' Charizard also exclaimed.

''Is that possible?'' Tyranitar asked. ''Can such a thing happen?''

''I don't understand it either,'' I said. ''Squirtle found me in the woods, I woke up, and saw that I was a

Pokémon. And I don't know why it happened.''

''Alakazam, you know everything, right?'' Riolu asked. ''Do you know why Anthony became a Pokémon

or how he could change back?'' Alakazam stood there for a moment.

''No,'' he replied. ''I cannot determine that.''

''Oh,'' Riolu said. I hung my head in sadness.

''However,'' Alakazam said. ''There is a way for unveiling the truth.''

''Oh, really? How?'' I said starting to wag my tail.

''Make way to the Hill of the Ancients,'' Alakazam replied. ''There, you will find a Pokémon that stares

into the sun all day. A Pokémon who is said to see into the future. Xatu is his name. He should shed light

on your puzzling friend.''

''Thank you, Alakazam!'' I cried. ''Come on, guys. Let's go see Xatu tomorrow.'' We then headed off for

Home along with Shiftry.

***Alakazam's p.o.v* **

''Alakazam,'' Charizard said to me. ''I know you. I don't think you're completely ignorant about this.''

Charizard paused. ''You know something, don't you?''

''There is something that concerns me,'' I replied. ''But, it should go unspoken for now…For their

sake…''


	8. Chapter 8

**Let's Go Team Wildfire!**

**Chapter Eight: The Ninetails Legend**

***Squirtle's p.o.v***

The next morning, we immediately set off for The Hill of the Ancients. In order to get there,

we needed to get through a place called the Great Canyon. It was a very long walk up a road that slowly

led upwards. During our walk, I wasn't as chipper as I used to be. I was wondering that if Anthony

became a human again, would he need to return to his world. I don't want him to go! He's a great

friend. All I can do is hope for the best. When we reached the summit, we saw a lone figure at the edge

of a cliff looking out towards the sun.

''That must be Xatu!'' Anthony stated. We ran over to Xatu as quickly as we could. ''Excuse

me,'' Anthony asked. ''Are you Xatu?'' There was no response.

''Hello?'' Zorua asked. He tapped Xatu with his paw but he just rocked back and forth as if

he was just a statue. ''Maybe he doesn't hear us?'' Zorua suggested.

''HELLO?'' Riolu shouted getting in front of Xatu. Still no response. ''What should we do?''

Riolu asked us.

''Let's tickle him,'' I suggested.

''Tickle him?'' Riolu asked. ''Well, it's worth a try I suppose.'' All of us started tickling various

parts of Xatu's body. We tried so hard, it tired us out.

''Nope,'' Anthony said panting. ''Nothing's making him crack.'' Xatu then started to snort and

then he cracked up laughing.

''Witness it,'' Xatu said. ''The sinking of the sun. Indeed.'' Xatu then turned around towards us.

''I am Xatu. You discerned my true identity. You are not an ordinary sort.''

''Guessed your identity?'' Riolu asked. ''That's a bit much don't you think?''

''No,'' Xatu replied. ''I can tell this.'' Xatu turned to Anthony and said, ''You there. You are no

ordinary Pokémon. You are…human, yes?''

''How can you tell that?'' Anthony asked in surprise.

''All day…I stare at the sun unblinking,'' Xatu replied. ''It gives me sight for all things. The past

and the future, too.''

''If you know, please tell us, Xatu!'' Anthony begged. ''I'm Anthony. I woke up one morning as a

Pokemon and I don't know why! You can tell, can't you? Please tell us.'' Xatu was silent for a few

moments.

''The calamities of nature,'' Xatu replied. ''There have been many in recent times. They occur

because the world's balance is upset. And your becoming a Pokémon…They are tied together.

inseparably so.''

''Wait,'' I said. ''Anthony becoming a Pokémon and…the natural disasters…are related?! What

do you mean?! What does Anthony have to do with the natural disasters we've been seeing?'' Xatu

remained silent for a moment. ''What is it?!'' I yelled. ''Why did you clam up?! Please, tell us! Please!''

''There are bigger concerns I am afraid,'' Xatu replied. ''The world's balance must be restored. Or

the unthinkable shall befall our world.'' We were horrified at that statement.

''Huh?'' Zorua exclaimed. ''You're serious?! The world…The unthinkable is coming?''

''Everyday, I see it,'' Xatu responded. ''The same future every day. I dread it…I fear it…The

world's destruction. ''

''The world's destruction…?'' Anthony asked sadly.

***Unknown p.o.v***

''Isn't that a surprise!'' I said to myself silently. ''That Anthony…was human…That's going to be

useful! This should be interesting!'' I laughed as I headed back towards town.

***Anthony's p.o.v***

I didn't sleep well last night. What Xatu said to us at The Hill of the Ancients was still troubling

me. _Me? Bring the unthinkable upon this world?_ I thought. _How? Why? I wonder if anyone else could _

_help us. _I walked outside to meet my friends. They weren't very happy either.

''So, anyone else bothered by what Xatu said?'' Riolu asked. We all nodded in agreement.

''The world will be destroyed if we don't do anything,'' Zorua said. ''But, what can we do?''

''Is there anyone else around here that could help?'' I asked. Everyone shrugged. ''Well, let's

go to the square. Maybe someone there could help us.'' We went to the square when we saw some

Pokémon chattering amongst each other.

''Excuse me,'' I said walking up to Lombre, Bellsprout, and Snubble, ''but what's all the

commotion about?''

''Well you know the Ninetails legend?'' Lombre asked. ''That old story?''

''What's the Ninetails legend?'' Squirtle asked.

''What, you don't know?'' Lombre asked again, ''You know, it's that old fairy tale. How you'll

get cursed if you ever grab one of Ninetails' tails.'' I recall hearing that before in my human life.

''All this time, everyone thought it was just a legend,'' Snubble added. ''But lately, it's been

rumored that maybe it really happened.''

''Well, it is still a mere rumor,'' Bellsprout said to us. ''I wouldn't put much stock in that story if I

were you. Personally, I don't believe in rumors of that sort.''

''Go talk to Whiscash if you want to know more,'' Lombre suggested to us. ''He's in his pond

down the road.''

''Thanks,'' I replied. We went off to see Whiscash to learn more about the legend.

''Whiscash?'' I asked the catfish-like Pokémon. ''What do you know about the Ninetails legend?''

''You wish to hear me tell old folklore?'' Whiscash replied in a jolly tone. ''Fine, then. Let me

recount the tale.'' We sat down on the platform in the pond to hear the story. ''There once lived a

Pokémon by the name of Ninetails,'' Whiscash began. ''Now, Ninetails had many tails, each imbued with

psychic power. It's said that anyone foolish enough to touch a tail would be cursed for a thousand

years. But, there was someone foolish enough to grab a tail.'' I noticed Squirtle was asleep next to me.

''Wake up,'' I whispered angrily. Squirtle woke up much to his displeasure.

''That person was a human,'' Whiscash went on. We immediately got more interested. ''As one

might expect, the human was supposed to be cursed for a thousand years. However, just when the

curse was cast, a Pokémon named Gardevoir shielded the human thus sacrificing herself to absorb the

curse.''

''Wow,'' Zorua said. ''That's very kind of that Pokémon to do something for someone so stupid.

But, why would she do that?''

''To Gardevoir, that human was her partner,'' Whiscash replied. ''There exist strong bonds

between humans and Pokémon. ''

''And there're good humans and bad humans, right?'' Squirtle asked.

''Correct,'' Whiscash answered. ''Taking pity on Gardevoir, Ninetails asked the human this: 'Do

you wish to save Gardevoir?' it asked. But, the human had already abandoned Gardevoir and fled.

Ninetails became disillusioned with the human and made this prediction: 'That human will one day be

reborn as a Pokémon and when the human becomes a Pokémon , the world's balance will be upset.'

and that is how the legend ends. Well? Did you find the legend interesting?'' My friends stood there

speechless. ''Oh ho! You're speechless!''

''You might say that,'' Riolu said sweating and laughing nervously. We then left for home.

''Suddenly, I don't feel like going on any missions today,'' Riolu said. Squirtle and Zorua nodded in

agreement.

''Why the sudden lack of zest, guys?'' I asked. My friends stood there silently insinuating that I

should know. ''What're those looks for? What, you think I was that heartless human?!'' My friends

remained silent. ''Answer me!''

''We don't know,'' Squirtle spoke up. ''That's all.''

''Well, you guys are giving me strange looks!'' I said getting irritated. I grunted in frustration.

''Whatever! Good night!'' I stormed off into the base_. I didn't betray that Gardevoir,_ I thought. _I'd never _

_do that. I've never even OWNED a Gardevoir! My friends have a lot of nerve to judge me like that. _I then

went to sleep.

***Larraine's p.o.v***

I've been in a spiraling pit of depression ever since Anthony disappeared. I've just been around

the house watching T.V., indulging in chocolate cherries, and sobbing. I've kept in close contact with my

father.

''Larraine, sweet heart,'' my father said to me on the phone while I stroked Lightning, ''you have

to move on.''

''I can't,'' I said depressed. ''I can never love again.''

''I'm afraid that your depression is going to give you rash thoughts,'' my father replied. ''I

couldn't bear to lose you!'' My father then started to sob (one of the rare cases that he would ever since

my mother passed away). ''Your mother would want you move on as well,'' he continued.

''Daddy, he's still out there!'' I responded. ''He didn't dump me. He's out there somewhere. I can

feel it in my heart. Mom would want me to give people a second chance.'' My father was silent for a

moment.

''OK, princess,'' he responded. ''I understand. I hope you're right. I love you.''

''I love you, too,'' I replied back. ''Anthony, please come back.'' I resumed watching T.V. when

suddenly the news came on.

''We interrupt this program to bring you shocking news,'' the news reporter said. ''Just mere

minutes ago, the volcano on Cinnabar Island has erupted! An emergency evacuation of the island has

begun. It has yet to be determined how many have died during the eruption. We will keep you updated

as new information arises. And now, back to your regularly scheduled program.'' The T.V. then switched

back to my original show.

I was horrified. I looked at Lightning who seemed equally scared. ''I have a bad feeling

about these recent natural disasters, little buddy,'' I said to him.

''Pika,'' Lightning replied nervously.

***Anthony's p.o.v***

Later that night, the strange dream returned to me along with the mysterious Pokémon.

''You're back,'' I said to it. ''Who are you? I always see you in these dreams.

''I am…Gardevoir,'' the Pokémon responded.

''Ga-Gardevoir…?!'' I cried.

''I'm so glad,'' Gardevoir replied smiling. ''Finally…I finally got to meet you...''

''Finally met me?'' I asked. ''You knew me from before? What about me?''

''I am your…'' Gardevoir started to say until she started to fade.

''No! Please!'' I yelled. ''Just a little longer…I want to know more…'' I then started to drift off. The

next morning, I felt someone pushing on my front leg. I woke up and saw it was Riolu with Squirtle and

Zorua standing nearby.

''Wake up!'' he said to me. ''Something's going on in the square.'' We went to the square to see

what was the matter. Everyone in the square was gathered around in a circle in the square.

''It's true!'' I heard someone say in a surprised tone.

''I can't believe it!'' I heard someone else say.

''I always thought it was just a rumor,'' someone added.

''What're they talking about?'' Squirtle asked. I could hear a familiar voice coming from the center

of the group.

''I can hear someone in the middle talking,'' I said. ''I believe its…Gengar!''

''Gengar?!'' Squirtle, Zorua, and Riolu responded.

''Would you be quiet?!'' Snubble said to us in an annoyed tone. ''We're trying to listen to this guy

speak.'' We quieted down and made our way through the large group and saw Gengar in the middle

talking about the Ninetails Legend.

''So I went up to the Hill of the Ancients,'' Gengar went on, ''and that's where I saw it. It was

shocking stuff, I tell you!'' Gengar laughed. ''This certain Pokémon was getting advice from Xatu. That

Pokémon…It looks like an ordinary Pokémon… But get this!'' Everyone leaned in closer to hear better.

''It was originally a human!'' That statement shocked all of us.

''A human?!'' someone asked.

''I can't believe it!'' someone replied.

''It really existed,'' someone else said, ''a human that turned into a Pokémon.''

''There's more,'' Gengar added grimly. ''Xatu told the human that how he turned into a Pokémon has a

lot to do with how the world's balance is upset.''

''Just like in the Legend,'' Lombre said.

''Don't be too shocked yet,'' Gengar said to Lombre. ''There's more.'' Gendar turned to all of the group.

''You know how there has been so many natural disasters lately?'' he asked. ''According to Xatu, they

have to do with the world's balance being upset. And if the balance isn't restored soon, the unthinkable

will happen to the world.'' The crowd gasped in horror.

''That Gengar,'' I said growling. ''He's deliberately working everyone up.'' Snubble then shushed me.

''Now, now people,'' Gengar said. ''There's no need to panic. Why I think there's something we can do

about this.'' The crowd turned towards Gengar with intrigue. ''It's simple. Since the human caused the

world's balance to be upset, then if we destroyed that vermin, then everything will turn to normal. Since

the coward abandoned Gardevoir, then I don't think he can complain if he was disposed of. Isn't

that right, Anthony?'' Everyone turned towards my friends and I with shock on their faces.

''You…You were that human?'' Bellsprout asked me.

''No!'' I replied. ''I'd never do that to someone let alone a Pokémon! I've never even had a Gardevoir!''

''Don't lie, Anthony,'' Gengar said. ''You're the only Pokémon we know of that used to be human.''

''Shut up!'' I barked at him.

''Everyone, please!'' Riolu pleaded. ''Listen to reason!''

''Are you really going to believe someone like Gengar?'' Squirtle yelled. ''Someone whose stolen

mission requests and lies to others?'' Everyone just stared at us with anger on their faces.

''Let's get him!'' someone yelled. My friends and I tried to make a run for the base but I felt vines wrap

around my legs and pull me to the ground.

''Guys, stop!'' Zorua yelled. ''What are you going to do with him?!''

''This human has betrayed a fellow Pokémon,'' Gengar said. ''For that, he must be punished!'' Gengar

raised his fist into the air. I cringed expecting the worst. When suddenly…

''Stop!'' a voice yelled. We turned to see Team A.C.T approaching us. _Am I glad to see you guys,_ I

thought relieved._ Maybe you guys can speak some sense into everyone. _

''What do you want?!'' Gengar said irritated.

''Let's be sensible about this,'' Alakazam replied. ''If we must destroy this human, let's give him time to

get away.'' My heart stopped in terror. _What?! You're siding with Gengar?!_ I thought. Everyone agreed

with Alakazam's suggestion. ''Anthony,'' Alakazam said to me. ''We'll give you tonight to get ready and

get away from here.'' Alakazam looked towards the crowd. ''Is that fair to everyone?'' he asked.

Everyone nodded without argument.

''Very well,'' Gengar said frustrated. ''We'll give the scum tonight.'' I was released from my captors and

turned towards Alakazam.

''I expected better from a Pokemon with a self-proclaimed 'I.Q. of five thousand,''' I said bitterly to

Alakazam. My friends and I then made our way to the based to prepare for tomorrow.


	9. Chapter 9

**Let's Go Team Wildfire!**

**Chapter Nine: The Quest for the Truth**

***Squirtle's p.o.v***

I couldn't believe it. All of the rescue teams in the area have turned against us! They'll now

stop at nothing to hunt us down and…I don't even want to think about it. I was getting my stuff ready

and was ready to head out the door when suddenly my dad wakes up.

''Where do you think you're going at this hour?'' he said sternly.

''I'm going with Anthony to prove that he's innocent,'' I replied.

''No, you're not,'' he responded. ''I don't want you to associate with that traitor. He

abandoned that innocent Gardevoir and he deserves everything that's coming to him.''

''Dad, Anthony wouldn't do that!'' I cried. ''He's a really nice person who would do anything to

protect others. He'd even risk his life to do so!''

''You are staying here and that is final!'' Dad yelled. He attempted to reach for my arm but I

pulled away quickly.

''No!'' I yelled. ''I'm not going to sit idly by while you guys hurt him!'' I ran off for the woods as

fast as my legs could carry me.

''SOOON!'' I heard my dad yell. I didn't bother to look back. _Anthony has done a lot for me,_ I

Thought. _He joined my rescue team and has been one of my best friends. I can't allow the other teams _

_to hurt him. I'll do everything in my power to protect him! _I soon made it to the base and saw Riolu and

Zorua out in front of the base.

''You guys were able to sneak away from home?'' I asked them.

''Yeah,'' they both replied. ''Anthony hasn't woken up yet, though.'' We looked and saw

Anthony twitching and cringing like he was having a bad dream.

''We gotta wake him up!'' I said. ''My dad's already awake and he could be here soon!''

***Anthony's p.o.v***

I woke and I was in a dark room.

''Where am I?'' I said frightfully. Suddenly, various Pokémon from the square looking at me with

angry looks. They then started beating me, scratching me, and attacking me in various ways leaving me

battered and lying on the ground. I looked up and saw Gardevoir with a very sad look on her face.

''Gardevoir,'' I said to her weakly. ''H-help me.''

''Why, Anthony?'' she asked. ''Why did you betray me?''

''I never betrayed you, Gardevoir!'' I cried. Gardevoir then turned into Gengar and laughed

maliciously. He then put his foot over me and was about to crush me when I suddenly woke up in a cold

sweat. I looked around to see my friends around me looking at me worriedly.

''You must have had a nightmare,'' Zorua said.

''Quickly, Anthony!'' Squirtle said. ''We have to go RIGHT NOW! The other Pokemon will be

awake soon!''

''I'm going, I'm going!'' I replied panicked. I quickly grabbed my stuff and we were heading off.

''Anthony?'' we heard a small voice say. We turned and saw Caterpie, Metapod, the two

Jumpluffs, and Diglett coming towards us. ''We wanted to wish you luck in finding the truth.''

''Yeah,'' Metapod said. ''We don't believe what Gengar said was true.''

''That's right,'' a Jumpluff said.

''We have your back one hundred percent,'' the other Jumpluff added.

''And we'll be waiting for you when you return heroes!'' Diglett said happily. Even Pelipper dropped off a letter wishing us luck. My eyes watered in joy.

''Thank you so much!'' I said. ''We'll come back with the truth. Don't worry. But right now, we

should be going.'' We then headed off into the distance with the others cheering for us all the way_. Our _

_journey is probably going to be the longest one we'll ever have,_ I thought._ There's no looking back now. _

_We need to discover the truth. _We made it through many obstacles and terrain types for mountains to

flaming landscapes with no rest. We then made it to a cave with many colorful rocks. ''What's this

cave?'' I asked panting.

''I'm not sure,'' Squirtle replied equally tired. ''I don't think it's been discovered yet.'' We then

heard voices. ''Oh no!'' Squirtle cried. ''They made it this far?! Quick, let's get into the cave!'' We

entered the cave. Inside, we saw that the cave was full of the colorful rocks from outside. The rocks

shined inside the cave and were quite the sight to behold. _I wish Larraine was here to see this, _I thought.

_This would be a perfect place for a date._ But, just remembering filled me with grief. ''What's wrong,

buddy?'' Squirtle asked.

''It's Larraine,'' I said.

''Who's that?'' Riolu asked.

''She's my girlfriend,'' I replied. ''From my world. Oh, you'd love her. She is a wonderful woman.

She's competitive but also kind. Just thinking about her makes me miss her so much. She's probably

worried sick about me. She worries easily.'' Tears filled my eyes.

''There, there buddy,'' Squirtle said. ''I'm sure you'll see her again. Maybe she could visit us!''

''But, she doesn't even know where this place is,'' I replied.

''Oh,'' Squirtle said sadly. ''Sorry.''

''It's OK, buddy,'' I replied. ''You didn't mean any harm.'' We made our way out of the cave in one

Piece and saw an impressive sight.

''Look at that volcano!'' Zorua said.

''That's Mt. Blaze,'' Riolu said. ''I heard that a legendary beast lives there!''

''Let's try to find a way around,'' I suggested,

''What, you too scared to go there?'' Riolu teased.

''No!'' I replied nervously. ''It's just that fighting the beast will take forever. And besides, what if the

teams catch up to us?'' Just then, we heard the voices of the rescue teams.

''Looks like we have no choice!'' I said. ''To the volcano!'' We hurried to Mt. Blaze.

***Zorua's p.o.v***

''This place is so hot!'' I said. Inside the volcano, the heat was incredibly intense. Definitely the

hottest place I've ever been to. Naturally, there were many Fire-type Pokémon inside the volcano.

Thankfully, with Squirtle on our side, we were able to stay alive. When we reached the peak of the

volcano, the heat was even more intense.

''It'll take awhile for the teams to get to us after going that,'' Anthony said referring to the volcano.

We were about to leave when we felt a rumble coming from within the volcano.

''Another earthquake?!'' Riolu yelled.

''No!'' Anthony replied. ''It's coming from the volcano!'' The volcano suddenly erupted!

''Oh no!'' I yelled. ''We're gonna die!'' It suddenly stopped and from the volcano came a bird with

flames on various parts of its body.

''Who are you?!'' Anthony asked.

''I am Moltres!'' the bird responded. ''Lord of fire! How dare you trespass on my volcano!''

Moltres then used Flamethrower. We dodged the attack and when it the rocks behind us, it melted.

_Charizard eat your heart out, _I thought.

''Moltres, we don't want to fight you!'' Anthony said. ''We're trying to escape from some rescue

teams. Please, let us go!''

''Silence!'' Moltres cried as he used Air Slash. Anthony dodged it. ''You are the ones defiling my

volcano! For that, you must pay!''

''Guess we'll just have to fight then,'' Squirtle said to us. Squirtle attacked with Water Gun and

Moltres countered with Flamethrower. When the two attacks collided, Squirtle's Water Gun got through

the fire and hit Moltres causing him to screech in pain.

''You insolent, brats!'' Moltres yelled. Moltres then began to open his beak and was charging a

yellow light.

''Squirtle, get out of there!'' Riolu yelled. ''He's gonna use Solarbeam!'' Squirtle attempted to

run away but, Moltres released the attack towards us which caused a massive explosion sending all of us

flying out of the volcano's peak. We flew for a few minutes when we landed in something soft and cold.

''W-w-where are we?'' Anthony said in a dizzy tone. We looked around and saw that we were in

A field of snow. We also saw that we were blasted miles from the volcano.

''Moltres must think that we're dead,'' I said. ''I'd kinda like to keep it that way.''

''Just look at this winter wonderland!'' Squirtle said with sparkles in his eyes.

''Yeah, we'll have to go through there in order to keep ahead of the teams,'' Riolu said. We then

made our way into the Frosty Forest.

***Riolu's p.o.v***

We marched through the snow and wind for what it felt like was hours. Even though Anthony,

Zorua, and I had fur to keep relatively warm with, it was still freezing. Squirtle had it the worst out of all

of us. He had little to keep warm with.

''H-h-how l-long have w-we b-been w-walking?'' Squirtle asked.

''Hours,'' I answered.

''I-it's s-so c-c-cold!'' Squirtle said.

''I know, Squirtle,'' Anthony replied. ''But, we can't stop or those rescue teams will catch us.''

Squirtle sneezed and his snot landed on the back of my head much to my disgust.

''Maybe, we could at least warm up,'' Anthony said. Anthony picked some wood and lit it up with

his fire. It felt good to have a fire and made me wish I was home again. But, we need to help Anthony

uncover the truth.

''Where would Ninetails be?'' Anthony asked.

''I don't know,'' I replied. ''Who knows? It could be dead by this time.''

''If we could find it, then we could prove Anthony's innocence,'' Zorua said.

''Maybe a local resident could help us,'' Squirtle suggested. ''Maybe that guy?'' Squirtle pointed to a

figure in the distance. It had a dog-like body with some kind of horn coming out of its head.

''Hello?'' I attempted to communicate with it. ''Could you help us?'' The figure then ran off into the

distance.

''Weirdo,'' Squirtle said. We covered up the fire with snow in order to cover up our tracks and went

off into the forest. We made it to the top of a mountain overlooking a great mountain range.

''Guess we're going to have to go off to that mountain range,'' I said.

''Halt!'' a voice cried. We looked around but there was no one there. The area got much colder

suddenly and, in a flash, a blue bird similar to Zapdos and Moltres appeared. ''I am Articuno!'' the bird

cried. ''You are the one's who're tainting my forest! The temperature has increased in my forest and is

melting the snow.''

''No Articuno!'' Anthony said. ''We're trying to find Ninetails. We mean no harm! Please let us

through!''

''Never!'' Articuno responded as he fired an Ice Beam. The attack made a frozen wall between our

Team with Anthony and Squirtle on one side and Zorua and I on the other. I leapt up to grab Articuno

with Force Palm but Articuno used Blizzard to blow me back. Squirtle used Water Gun. However,

Articuno froze Squirtle with another Ice Beam.

''Stop!'' a voice called out. We looked and we saw the mysterious figure from earlier again. ''Stop the

fighting, Articuno. These Pokémon are telling the truth. They are not the ones hurting your forest.''

''How do I know I can trust you, Absol?'' Articuno asked.

''I've seen other areas being affected by the natural disasters,'' Absol replied. ''I can sense natural

disasters and I know it's not these Pokémon who are causing them. Let them pass.'' Articuno stared at

us intensely.

''Fine,'' Articuno said. ''They may pass.'' We breathed a sigh of relief.

''However!'' Articuno said suddenly. ''Promise me that you'll quell these natural disasters, young

ones.''

''We will,'' all of us said together. Articuno then flew off.

''Thanks for helping us,'' Squirtle said.

''It's nothing,'' Absol replied. ''I've been following you when you entered the forest. I've heard that

you're fugitives because others believe that you're causing the natural disasters. I understand that

feeling. My race has been blamed for causing natural disasters, as well. Thus, we've been driven into the

mountains.''

''I'm sorry about that,'' Anthony said. ''Why don't you join our rescue team? We could use your help!

Can he Riolu?''

''OK,'' I replied. We then made our way to the mountain range.

***Anthony's p.o.v***

We walked along an icy trail that leads to the mountains. The ice felt good on my feet since they

were sore from walking for so long. As we walked along, I started to feel dizzy.

''Anthony, what's wrong?'' Squirtle asked concerned.

''I f-f-feel dizzy,'' I said. I then started to feel sleepy. My friends' looks of concern were the last things I

saw before I drifted off. I then heard a familiar voice.

''Finally…,'' the voice said. ''Finally I get to meet you.''

''Ga-Gardevoir?'' I said shocked.

''Ahead, inside the mountain cave, lies Ninetails,'' she said. ''She is waiting for you and your friends.''

''She is?'' I asked.

''Yes,'' she replied. ''Now, push on forward. I know you can do it.'' She smiled and then disappeared.

''Anthony!'' I heard Riolu yell.

''Anthony, wake up!'' I heard Absol yell. I woke up in a panic.

''What's going on?!'' I asked.

''The teams!'' Riolu replied. ''They're coming! We gotta run for that cave!'' We made a run for the cave

before we could be seen. The inside of the cave was very cold and very slippery due to the icy floor. I

decided to tell my friends about the dream.

''I had a dream,'' I said. ''Gardevoir appeared in it.''

''Gardevoir?!'' Squirtle said. ''The one from the legend.''

''Yes,'' I replied. ''She said Ninetails is in this cave waiting for us.''

''Really?!'' Squirtle said excitedly. ''C'mon, let's go find her!'' Squirtle ran ahead of us and fell through a

trap door. We heard Squirtle scream and a sliding sound.

''Squirtle?!'' I called as we looked down the slide. Zorua suddenly bumped into Absol, Riolu, and I from

behind sending us down the slide. We slid for a long time when we landed on Squirtle at the bottom of

the slide inside a snowy room.

''It's a dead end,'' I said.

''So we found you,'' a familiar voice said sending a chill down my spine. We looked and saw Team

A.C.T.

''Alakazam! Please don't do this!'' I pleaded. ''I was told Ninetails is here!''

''I'm sorry, Anthony,'' Alakazam replied. ''But, we must do what we must do to save our world.''

Alakazam's hands glowed and held me in place with his psychic powers. I felt great pressure on my

body_. Alakazam is going to crush me!_ I thought panicked. I looked behind me and saw Charizard and

Tyranitar holding the others back to keep them from interfering. _I'm sorry guys, _I thought tears welling

up in my eyes. _I'm sorry Larraine. If only I could've told you I had to leave and how much I love you. _

Suddenly, a golden Pokémon jumped in front of Alakazam thus breaking his concentration and releasing

me.

''Stop this fighting, Alakazam,'' the Pokémon said. ''These Pokémon are my guests.''

''Ninetails!'' Alakazam exclaimed. ''Ninetails, is Anthony the human from the legend? Is the legend

even real?'' Ninetails looked at me and I stared into her red eyes.

''The legend is real,'' she replied. ''And the selfish human still lives, but Anthony is not that human.''

''You hear that, guys?!'' I said. ''I'm innocent!'' My friends and I were overjoyed to hear the fantastic

news and we all played in celebration.

''Also, the world's balance and the human becoming a Pokémon are not linked in any way,'' Ninetails

went on. ''The cause of that exists elsewhere.'' Ninetails turned to Team A.C.T. ''By the way you three,''

she said. ''I believe you owe these boys an apology.''

''Oh,'' Alakazam said embarrassed. ''Team Wildfire, we're sorry for attacking you and not giving you

the benefit of a doubt.''

''Yeah, sorry,'' Tyranitar said ashamed.

''Think nothing of it,'' I replied. ''The stress of the natural disasters got to everyone.''

''I knew Anthony was innocent all along,'' Charizard boasted. Riolu, Squirtle, and Zorua shot Charizard

nasty looks in response.

''It's quite impressive how you all travelled so far from home all the way to here.'' Alakazam said.

''Yeah, the threat of death will do that to ya,'' Riolu said annoyed. Suddenly, a massive earthquake was

set off.

''Earthquake!'' Squirtle yelled. ''And a nasty one, too!''

''It feels like it's coming from deep beneath the earth!'' Absol said.

''The natural disasters are getting worse!'' Ninetails said. ''Groudon is awakening!''

''What's a Groudon?!'' I asked.

''A huge Pokémon that made the continents,'' Alakazam replied. ''It's been asleep for centuries ever

since its great battle with its rival, Kyogre. Team Wildfire, go home and get some rest! We'll deal with

Groudon!''

''Gotcha!'' I responded. ''Thank you, Ninetails for proving my innocence.''

''It's no trouble at all,'' she replied with a smile. My team then teleported back to Pokémon Square

while Team A.C.T went to challenge Groudon.

***Gengar's p.o.v***

I was in Pokémon Square with Ekans and the rest of the Pokémon in Pokémon Square.

''Why aren't all of you going after Team Wildfire?'' I asked.

''The journey is too difficult for us,'' Lombre replied.

''I heard that Team Wildfire is way far out in the wilderness,'' Snubble added.

''I went up to Mt. Blaze,'' Shiftry said, ''but since I'm Grass type, I can't go in there. I joined the chase

with a heavy heart. Team Wildfire saved me from Zapdos.''

''Baaah!'' I said disgustedly. ''You're all a bunch of softies!''

''Well, why aren't you out there chasing down Team Wildfire?'' Lombre asked irritated. ''All talk, no

action?''

''Our job is to report Team Wildfire's destruction,'' I responded. Suddenly, Medicham ran up to me in a

huff.

''G-G-Gengar!'' she said. ''Team Wildfire's…''

''What?'' I asked eagerly. ''Dead? Captured? What is it?!''

''Alive, Gengar,'' I heard a familiar voice say. I looked and saw Team Wildfire and an Absol marching

towards us. The Pokémon and I were shocked to say the least.

''Miss us?'' Squirtle asked with a smirk. ''We proved Anthony's innocence.''

''Y-y-y-you did?'' I stammered in a panicked tone. ''W-w-where's the proof?''

''Proof?'' Zorua asked sadly. ''We didn't bring proof.''

''Then how can we believe you without proof?'' I asked. ''You just came back to your demise. Alright

guys, get 'em!'' Just then, Pelipper flew by dropping the latest issue of the Pokémon Report. Everyone

picked up an issue of the report and it read:

Pokémon News

= EXTRA =

Anthony Innocent!

Anthony met with Ninetails under the watchful eye of Alakazam and proved that he had nothing to do

with the human in the legend. As a result, Gengar's claims were found to be malicious lies.

''Y-y-you scumbag,'' Shiftry said angrily.

''Now, now guys,'' I said nervously. ''Let's not be too hasty.''

''RUN!'' Ekans yelled. My team and I ran off with the rest of the Pokémon in hot pursuit with Team

Wildfire's laughter following as well.


	10. Chapter 10

**Let's Go Team Wildfire!**

**Chapter Ten: Mankey Mayhem**

***Larraine's p.o.v***

Natural disasters have been frequent and severe as of late. Just yesterday, we had a severe

earthquake. Many people are freaking out and proclaiming that it's a sign of the apocalypse. I don't

know what to believe but I can't help but get a really bad feeling. It scares me to think about it. This

makes me wish that Anthony was around even more. He had a very positive outlook on life which was

so encouraging. But, without him, I feel so alone and helpless. My friends keep telling me to find

someone else, but I can't bring myself to do it. I don't think I could love anyone else. They all think that

Anthony dumped me, but they don't know his heart. He is the kindest person I've ever met. I have a

feeling inside that he's out there and that he's just as worried about me as I him. I wonder if I'll ever see

him again.

***Anthony's p.o.v***

The dream returned to me again two nights later ever since we returned to Pokémon Square.

Gardevoir once again appeared in my dream.

''It's been awhile, Gardevoir,'' I said to her. ''Listen, I have a lot of questions for you. First of all,

why do you come to me in my dreams?''

''I'm an agent of spirits,'' she replied. ''I watch over you. That is my role now.''

''Agent of spirits?'' I asked.

''Yes,'' she confirmed. ''I was cursed by Ninetails instead of my trainer and so I became a spirit.''

''You mean the human from the legend?'' I inquired. ''It sickens me that that trainer left you like

that.''

''Yes, he was a terrible person,'' Gardevoir said. ''He was conniving and mean, but I don't hate

him.''

''I'm surprised,'' I said.

''I don't know why he did that to me, but I feel not hate towards him,'' Gardevoir went on. ''He

had good qualities after all.''

''Gotta rummage through the garbage to get to the gold, eh?'' I asked.

''Right,'' Gardevoir laughed. ''I was desperate to protect him. I protected him from Ninetails' curse

with my entire being. That is our role as Gardevoir. To protect our trainers no matter what. I was happy

just to keep him safe.''

''That's amazing,'' I said.

''I personally don't mind my new form,'' Gardevoir added smiling. ''It reminds me that I did the

right thing.''

''What about my role that you keep mentioning?'' I asked again.

''All things in this world have a role to fulfill,'' Gardevoir answered. ''Like I have a role, so do you,

Anthony. You were summoned to this world to complete a mission.''

''So that's why I was turned into a Pokémon?'' I asked further.

''That's correct,'' Gardevoir responded. Suddenly, another earthquake happened.

''Oh no, not another earthquake!'' I cried. Gardevoir then started to vanish. ''No Gardevoir, please!'' I

begged. ''What's my role?!'' But it was too late. She vanished and I started to doze off. When I woke up

the next morning, I was frustrated that I didn't learn about my ''role.'' _I was so close,_ I thought. _I was so _

_close to getting more answers. _I then went outside to wait for my friends. _Oh well, _I thought. _I guess I'll _

_have to wait longer._ My friends came up to me with tired expressions on their faces. ''Hey guys,'' I

greeted. ''What's with your faces?'' I laughed.

''Very funny,'' Riolu replied unenthusiastically.

''It was that earthquake last night,'' Squirtle added.

''If only I had coffee,'' I said. ''That'd perk you up.''

''What's coffee?'' Zorua asked drowsily.

''A beverage that gives people energy,'' I replied. ''It really helps me get up. But, c'mon guys, let's go

get some missions done!'' I ran down the path when I bumped into something that felt like rubber.

When I snapped out of my daze, I realized that I bumped into a tall, blue Pokémon that had its eyes

closed. ''I'm so sorry!'' I said apologetically.

''Wobbuffet!'' the Pokémon replied while making a saluting gesture.

''My friend said, 'That's OK!''' a voice said. I looked and saw a cheery Pokémon that was also blue with

long ear like arms. ''I'm Wynaut and this is my friend Wobbuffet. We were coming to ask if you could

help us.''

''Sure, what can we do for you?'' I asked as my friends walked up to us.

''A gang of Mankeys are rampaging in our forest home,'' Wynaut explained. ''We need you guys to go

rough them up.''

''Wobbuffet!'' Wobbuffet ''added.''

''Mankeys?'' Squirtle scoffed. ''No problem!''

''Mankeys are really aggressive you know,'' Wynaut said to Squirtle. ''So please be careful. The place

you have to go to is Uproar Forest. Good luck!''

''Wobbuffet!'' Wobbuffet exclaimed. The two then went on their way. We made our way towards

Uproar Forest and right when we arrived, it was apparent that the Mankeys were here. There were fist

marks on trees and broken branches strewn everywhere.

''Wow,'' Zorua said. ''They wrecked the place!'' We listened for a minute and heard screeching and

breaking sounds coming from within the forest.

''Sounds like trouble,'' Squirtle said.

''Let's go,'' Riolu said. We made our way to the heart of the forest and saw three Mankey standing in a

circle. They then turned towards us with anger on their faces.

''Whaddya want?!'' the largest Mankey asked angrily.

''We heard you're causing trouble for everyone here!'' Riolu replied pointing at them.

''Y-y-you DARE accuse us of causing trouble?!'' the Mankey responded fuming. ''Your dim-witted

faces're ticking me off! Get 'em! Muuukeeeeh!'' The Mankeys leapt on us and started punching and

scratching us without mercy. _They're going to beat us to death if we don't retaliate!_ I thought. I then

used Flamethrower to blast one Mankey off of me and went to help my friends fighting the soreness I

felt all over me. My Flamethrower just seemed to make the Mankeys even angrier and they started

throwing rocks and sticks at us. I then used Roar to blast the Mankeys away which knocked them out

when they hit some trees.

''I-is everyone OK?'' I asked.

''Besides my bruises and scratches, I'm in one piece,'' Riolu replied with some trouble dues to his

bruised cheeks..

''Same here,'' Squirtle and Zorua added beaten just as badly. We left the forest to report to Wynaut

and Wobbuffet our completed mission.

***Zorua's p.o.v***

''Thank you all so much!'' Wynaut said to us beaming.

''Wobbuffet!'' Wobbuffet added just as happy.

''Sorry that you guys got beaten so badly,'' Wynaut apologized.

''It's fine,'' Riolu responded. ''All in a day's work for a rescue team.''

''OK,'' Wynaut said relieved. ''Oh yeah, here's your reward.'' Wynaut pulled out some kind of nut and

handed it to Riolu. ''It's a peeled chestnut.''

''Oh,'' Riolu said surprised (not in a good way). ''Thank you._'' A chestnut? _I thought. _We get beaten up _

_for a chestnut?_

''HEY!'' the voice yelled which almost made my heart stop. We turned and saw the Mankey gang

approaching us with pure fury in their eyes. ''We ain't done with you yet! You're gonna pay for what you

did to us back there!'' They were about to attack us when one Mankey noticed the peeled chestnut in

Riolu's paw.

''Boss, look!'' the Mankey said to the leader. ''A peeled chestnut!'' The Mankeys were captivated by

the chestnut as if it was a deity. They were much calmer afterwards.

''Can we have that chestnut?'' the leader asked sweetly. We all looked at each other and Anthony

looked like he had an idea.

''Sure,'' he said. ''BUT, if you help us renovate our base!''

''We will!'' the Mankeys said together.

''C'mon guys,'' Anthony said. ''Let's go get some materials!'' We then ran off for town to get some

painting and building supplies. Caterpie, Wynaut, and Wobbuffet joined us in the remodeling. It took

several days to get half-way done with the project. One day, while building, we saw the Mankey gang

sleeping.

''Hey, guys,'' Riolu said. ''We need you guys to help us more!''

''We don't wanna,'' one Mankey responded.

''What do oyu mean?'' Riolu asked in an annoyed tone.

''No chestnuts means no motivation for us to work,'' another Mankey answered. Riolu groaned.

''Fine, we'll get you more chestnuts,'' Riolu said. ''Deal?''

''Now you're speaking our language!'' the leader answered.

''Zorua, Anthony, go get more chestnuts,'' Riolu commanded. ''Squirtle and I will keep working here.''

Anthony and I headed off to get more chestnuts. Several days and many chestnuts expeditions later, the

renovations were done. The base had a red and orange fire pattern going around it with the faces of

Anthony, Riolu, Squirtle, and I above the entrance. Our flag in the upper left of the yard had a flame

print on it.

''I love it!'' Anthony exclaimed while wagging his tail.

''Yeah!'' Caterpie added in awe.

''The work was definitely worth it,'' Wynaut said.

''Wobbuffet!'' Wobbuffet said in agreement.

''Does this mean you're not going to give us anymore chestnuts?'' the Mankey leader asked.

''Sorry, but yeah,'' Riolu answered. The Mankeys then walked towards our base.

''What are they doing?'' Anthony asked. The Mankey suddenly started to destroy our base!

''Oh no!'' Squirtle exclaimed. We pulled the Mankey away from the base and chased them off making

the promise not to come back. Thankfully, the base wasn't badly damaged. We then got a well deserved

rest that night.

***Riolu's p.o.v***

The next morning, we made our way to Pokémon Square to see a large gathering of rescue teams

from other areas. Lombre greeted us.

''Hey guys,'' Lombre said. ''C'mere. Shiftry has called all local rescue teams to an important meeting.''

We got a spot in the front row to see Shiftry on a platform in the front.

''My fellow, Pokémon,'' Shiftry began. ''We have an emergency. Team A.C.T has not returned from

their fight with Groudon. I am calling for any rescue teams that'd be willing to rescue them.''

''We'll go!'' Anthony volunteered.

''You?'' the other Pokémon asked wide-eyed as they started to laugh.

''I'm sorry, Anthony,'' Shiftry said. '' I truly respect your courage and I know you beat Zapdos, but

Groudon is much worse. He'll crush you and your team like bugs. I need a more experienced team.''

''I'll go,'' Blastoise said stepping forward.

''I will, too,'' Octillery said as well.

''And so will I,'' Golem added pushing Anthony back.

''Then it's settled,'' Shiftry stated. ''These three will form a temporary rescue team and go rescue Team

A.C.T. Good luck, you three.''

''Be careful, daddy,'' Squirtle said concerned.

''I will son,'' Blastoise said hugging him. ''I'll return with Team A.C.T and quell Groudon.'' The three

Pokémon set off for the underground.

''We're not that weak,'' Anthony said pouting.

''It'll be fine,'' I said to him. ''Sometimes, you gotta step back and the adults handle things.''

''But I'm eighteen,'' Anthony responded. ''I'm an adult now! I hate being treated like a child.'' We went

off to do our own rescue mission and called it a day.

***Squirtle's p.o.v***

We hurried to Pokémon Square eager to see if my dad, Octillery, and Golem returned successfully.

What we got was the complete opposite. We saw a battered and beaten dad, Octillery, and Golem.

''DAD!'' I yelled as I ran up to my dad with my friends close behind.

''What happened to you guys?'' Zorua asked.

''That place is rough,'' my dad answered weakly.

''We didn't even confront Groudon,'' Octillery groaned.

''I'm not going back down there,'' Golem replied.

''They were defeated,'' Shiftry said. ''The underground is worse than expected.'' Gengar then came up

to us laughing.

''How foolish for them to think that they could win,'' Gengar mocked.

''What did you say?'' I asked leering.

''They're fools,'' Gengar answered. ''There's no way anyone here could possibly rescue Alakazam's

team.''

''I can't go down there,'' a Meganium said. ''I'd burn up!''

''An earthquake would destroy me,'' a Raichu added.

''Fire is my weakness,'' Shiftry said sadly. I couldn't take all this discouraging talk.

''Everyone!'' I said. ''Listen to me!'' Everyone turned towards me. ''We'll go show Groudon what were

made of and rescue Alakazam's team!'' Everyone gasped.

''Forget that!'' my dad said. ''Groudon would destroy you all!''

''Dad, we can't just sit by while Groudon runs amuck down there,'' I said.

''But…'' my dad was about to say.

''Dad,'' I said cutting him off. ''My team and I defeated Zapdos and we took our longest journey ever

when we were fugitives. You gotta let us at least try. Please?'' My dad looked at me silently for a

moment.

''OK,'' he sighed. ''But, for the love of Pete, prepare yourself and prepare yourself well. It's not going

to be easy.''

''Thank you, dad,'' I said kissing him. ''Besides, my friends will back me up. We'll return heroes!'' We

then set off to pack our supplies for the trip.

''I'll make plans for your funeral!'' Genagr taunted. We just ignored him.

***Anthony's p.o.v***

That night, the dream returned to me with Gardevoir in tow.

''So, you'll take on that dungeon tomorrow, right?'' she asked.

''Yep,'' I answered.

''I sense fear inside you,'' she said.

''Yeah,'' I replied. ''I heard it's a monster of a dungeon. I can feel my heart pounding.''

''Don't worry,'' Gardevoir reassured. ''I know you can do it. You've been through so much after all.''

''Thanks,'' I responded with a smile. ''Say, what's the underground and Groudon like?''

''I don't know,'' she replied sadly. ''I'm sorry.''

''It's OK,'' I said reassuring her. ''I'll just have to find out tomorrow. I'm just thankful for your

encouraging words.''

''I do know one thing,'' she added quickly. ''Your role in this world will soon come to an end.''

''My role's ending?'' I questioned.

''You became a Pokémon to fulfill a certain role,'' she said, ''which brought you here.'' Gardevoir

started to fade. ''It's coming,'' she said. ''Soon.''

''But, what's that role?'' I asked. ''Why did I turn into a Pokémon? Please tell me!''

''I will tell you when the time comes,'' she replied mysteriously as she disappeared. The next

morning, I woke up and met up with my friends. As we walked, I had questions buzzing around in my

head. _My role's ending? _I thought. _But, what role is she talking about? _

''Hey Anthony,'' Squirtle asked. ''What's up? You look concerned.''

''Oh, it's nothing,'' I responded. We came upon a large cavern leading underground. ''this must be

it,'' I said. My heart pounded in my chest. _No turning back now, _I thought. _We gotta get down there, _

_rescue Team A.C.T, and quell Groudon. _We entered the Magma Cavern.


	11. Chapter 11

**Let's Go Team Wildfire!**

**Chapter Eleven: Revelations**

***Squirtle's p.o.v***

The Magma Cavern lived up to what the others said about it. It WAS tough! There were Fire,

Ground, and Rock type Pokémon everywhere from Onix to Magmar to Hippowdon. We barely made it to

the end if it weren't thanks to our Oran Berries. We made it to a long tunnel and saw the familiar shapes

of Charizard and Tyranitar. We ran to them as fast as we could.

''Charizard! Tyranitar!'' Anthony yelled. The two giants woke up.

''What are you kids doin' down here?'' Charizard asked weakly.

''To rescue you guys and Alakazam, of course,'' Anthony replied.

''You need to get out of here fast!'' Tyranitar said. ''Groudon is no joke''

''We don't care!'' I responded. ''Groudon must be stopped. He can't be allowed onto the

surface!''

''But, you're just rooky kids,'' Charizard said.

''We're not kids!'' Anthony snapped. ''We're here to save you guys and stop Groudon PERIOD!

We've been through so much as it is. We can do it.'' Charizard and Tyranitar stared for a moment

quietly.

''All right,'' Charizard said. ''Get down there, save Alakazam, and stop Groudon!''

''I have a good feeling that your guys' coming down here was a smart idea after all,'' Tyranitar

smiled. ''You all maybe small, but you guys got heart.'' We smiled back and ran into the cavern's depths.

We entered the next room and saw Alakazam wounded, but still standing.

''You,'' he said to us. ''Get out of here! NOW!''

''Not without you!'' Riolu said. We ran up to him, but, in a flash of light, Alakazam disappeared and,

in his place, Groudon stood over us and roared.

''H-H-HE'S HUGE!'' Zorua yelled in fear. Groudon attempted to step on us, but we were to quick for

him.

''He's big, but he's slow,'' Anthony said. ''We gotta confuse him!'' We ran around the behemoth as

he tried to slash at us with his claws. We peppered him from all sides with Fire Blasts, Hydro Pumps,

Dark Pulses, and Focus Blasts. Groudon started to grow physically weaker. However, when we were on

the ground, he must've caught on and used Earthquake which launched us into the air and he slammed

each of us into the wall. When we looked up, we saw that Groudon was going to blast us with Overheat.

''We're doomed!'' Riolu yelled.

''No!'' I yelled. ''We gotta blast him with all that we've got!'' Anthony used Fire Blast, Zorua used

Dark Pulse, Riolu used Focus Blast, and I used Hydro Pump. Groudon unleashed Overheat and all our

attacks connected causing a massive explosion. When the dust settled, we saw an incredible sight.

Groudon was defeated! ''W-we did it!'' I stammered. ''WE DID IT!'' We danced in celebration when

suddenly, Alakazam, Charizard, and Tyranitar teleported in exhausted. When they saw a knocked out

Groudon, their eyes practically popped out of their heads.

''Y-y-you knocked out Groudon?!'' they all said together.

''Now will you learn to stop doubting us?'' Riolu asked teasingly.

''Well, I'm eating my words,'' Charizard said. We then teleported out of the dungeon. When we

entered the square, we were greeted by everyone's shocked faces.

''I don't believe it!'' Shiftry said in a jolly tone. ''You all returned in one piece!''

''Son!'' my dad said as he squeezed me. ''I'm so proud of you! You defeated Groudon AND saved

Team A.C.T. I'm sorry I doubted you and your friends.'' Everyone else also apologized obviously

embarrassed.

''It's fine, everyone,'' I said. ''We doubted ourselves too for a moment.''

''I knew you guys could do it!'' Caterpie said tearing up. Suddenly, there was a flash of light and I

could've sworn I heard a familiar voice. All of us looked around to see who was talking, but there was no

one.

''Everyone!'' Xatu said with some panic in his voice.

''Xatu?'' we asked.

''He's using telepathy,'' Alakazam said.

''I have terrible news!'' Xatu continued. ''It's coming! A giant shooting star is coming towards our

planet!''

''A shooting star?!'' Anthony asked also panicked.

''You mean those things you wish upon?'' I asked as well.

''Yes, This star is upsetting the balance of nature,'' Xatu furthered. ''If it hits the planet, it will

extinguish all life as we know it! It MUST be destroyed at all costs!'' The crowd started to panic and talk

amongst each other.

''Tell us, Xatu,'' Alakazam asked. ''Can we stop this star?''

''Yes,'' Xatu answered. ''There is only one way. Seek Rayquaza.''

''What's a Rayquaza?'' my dad asked.

''A Pokémon that lives in the sky,'' Xatu replied. ''Only he can destroy the star.''

''How can anyone get to the sky?'' I asked.

''Xatu and I can combine our powers to send Pokémon up there,'' Alakazam responded. ''However,

it is unkown what it is like up there. Not even I know.''

''We'll do it!'' My team and I said in perfect unison.

''I figured that there'd be no better for the job than, you,'' Alakazam said to us.

''Hey, I'd trust anyone who trounced Groudon to save the world!'' Charizard laughed. All of us

laughed as well.

''There's no time to lose,'' Xatu said. ''Team Wildfire, prepare for tomorrow.''

''We will,'' Riolu responded.

''Here,'' one of the Keckleon Brothers said to us. ''Just pick whatever you want!''

''Anything to prevent the apocalypse!'' the other added.

***Gengar's p.o.v***

I snuck into that fool Anthony's house at night to use my Dream Eater attack. Upon using the

attack, Anthony started to cringe in his sleep. How delightful! _Like my Dream Eater? _I asked. _Horrible, _

_isn't it?_ I giggled. _I'd never have suspected that you were a human. You must be a real lo life, eh? Now, to _

_unravel what's in your heart! _Suddenly, I noticed a light entering the room. _What's that light?_ I thought.

It came closer to Anthony. I made a bolt for the door before anything bad happened to me.

***Anthony's p.o.v***

The pain I felt suddenly went away and the nightmare became a pleasant dream. Gardevoir

then appeared to me again.

''Is it time to spill the beans now?'' I asked.

''Yes,'' she replied. ''You were summoned to save this world which is why you became a

Pokémon. You were the hero we needed.''

''A hero?'' I asked. ''Me? You're making me blush. What makes me so special and any different from

anyone else?''

'' I sensed that your heart was full of compassion and that you'd be the right person for the

job,'' Gardevoir went on. ''It's not a matter of power. A true hero needs compassion for others, loyalty,

and courage. You fulfilled the requirements.''

''Gee,'' I said. ''I'm flattered. But, it's one thing to save one person. It's a whole other matter

to save a world.''

''Don't be afraid, Anthony,'' Gardevoir reassured. ''You can do anything. Besides, your friends

are there for you as well.''

''Yeah,'' I said. ''They are the best friends I could ever want.''

''Oh,'' Gardevoir said in a sad tone. ''After the star is destroyed, you'll have to become

human once again and return to your human world.''

''WHAT?!'' I shouted. ''You mean I'm gonna have to leave my friends behind?!''

''Yes,'' Gardevoir replied sadly. ''I'm sorry, Anthony. But, I sense that, somewhere in the

world, someone is weeping for you to come home. She really misses you.''

''Larraine?'' I inquired. That statement brought tears to my eyes. ''She msut be worried sick

about me!'' I sobbed. Suddenly, there was a flash of light. ''What was that?'' I asked.

''Someone tried to look into your dream,'' Gardevoir answered. ''But, whoever it was, he ran

away in tears.''

''Gardevoir,'' I started to ask. ''If, for some reason, I don't return alive, tell Larraine what

happened to me and that I love her so much.''

''I will,'' Gardevoir replied. ''But I'm sure that you'll return victorious.'' She smiled. ''Now, get

some rest. You have a big day tomorrow.'' Gardevoir vanished and I went to sleep.

***Larraine's p.o.v***

The news reported that a massive asteroid is headed for the planet. When it impacts, it'll

destroy all life on the planet. It's estimated that it'll hit the planet in three hours. _Three hours until our _

_demise, _I thought. _I wonder if Anthony knows about this. I hope he found somewhere safe to be. _My

father came over to my house to spend what little time we had together.

''Well,'' he said. ''Can't believe something like this would happen.''

''Yeah,'' I said solemnly while stroking Lightning who was just as worried.

''Guess all we can do is try to have a peaceful time with one another,'' he said trying to

smile. I just remained silent. My father just hugged me close. ''I'm so sorry for your heartbreak,'' he said

tearing up. We just sat there crying together.

***Squirtle's p.o.v***

As we made our way to the Hill of the Ancients, I couldn't help but notice that Anthony seemed

pretty down-hearted.

''Hey, buddy,'' I said to Anthony. ''You alright? Nervous?''

''Yeah,'' Anthony replied. ''You could say that.'' We made it to the peak and saw Alakazam and

Xatu together.

''You made it,'' Alakazam said to us.

''Are you ready to ascend?'' Xatu asked us. We all nodded in agreement. ''Then let's begin.'' Xatu

Screeched and started to form a small, green light. ''This is a Teleport Gem,'' Xatu said to us. ''Use it to

get to the sky dungeon. Riolu grabbed the gem. ''Alakazam, a mysterious Ghost-type Pokémon, and I

made it'' Xatu elaborated. _I wonder who that could be?_ I wondered. ''Now, off you go!'' Xatu said to us.

Riolu held up the gem and we were instantly teleported straight up. When we came to, we saw that we

were high amongst the clouds at the foot of a great tower made of clouds.

''Wow,'' Zorua said. ''We're really high up!''

''Y-y-yeah,'' Anthony said nervously. Anthony quickly shook off his nervousness. ''No time to

chicken out. We gotta save this world.'' We entered the tower. At the top, there was no one.

''Rayquaza?'' Riolu called out. We then heard a great roar and out of the clouds came a long,

green snake-like Pokémon. Rayquaza!

''You land dwellers dare to trespass on my sky kingdom?'' Rayquaza boomed.

''No Rayquaza!'' Anthony said. ''We want you to-''

''SILENCE!'' Rayquaza shouted. ''No land dwellers shall trespass on my kingdom and live!''

Rayquaza tried to sweep us with his tail but we jumped it. Riolu fired a Focus Blast, but Rayquaza used

Dragon Pulse to cancel it.

''Rayquaza!'' Zorua pleaded. ''We don't have time to argue! We need your help!''

''Never!'' Rayquaza responded. _Stubborn dragon, _I thought in an annoyed tone. I blasted

Rayquaza with an Ice Beam which knocked Rayquaza out cold (no pun intended). When Rayquaza came

to, he was about to strike again when we felt a great tremor. ''A tremor?'' Rayquaza wondered. ''In the

sky?''

''Look up, Rayquaza!'' I yelled. He looked up and saw the now closer than ever shooting star.

''What is that?!'' he yelled.

''A shooting star!'' Riolu yelled back. ''When it hits the planet, it'll destroy everything and

everyone! We need you to destroy it! You're our only hope!''

''If I use my Hyper Beam to destroy it,'' Rayquaza started to say, ''I can't guarantee you'll

survive!''

''WE DON'T CARE!'' all of us yelled. ''We just wanna save the world.'' Rayquaza was surprised

and unleashed Hyper Beam.

***Larraine's p.o.v***

We payed attention to the T.V. all day waiting for updates on the asteroid. It was minutes from

impact. My father, Lightning, and I huddled together expecting the worst.

''What's this?'' the reporter said. ''It looks like a Pokemon just blew up the asteroid!

It's…Rayquaza!''

''Huh?'' I gasped elated. ''Rayquaza destroyed the asteroid?!''

''Well, whaddya know!'' my father said equally happy. Lightning cried out happily. We all

hugged each other crying in joy.

''Hold on!'' the reporter suddenly said. ''It looks like some other Pokemon are falling from the

tower Rayquaza is on.'' The camera zoomed in and we saw a Riolu, a Squirtle, a Zorua, and a Growlithe

all wearing adorable scarves and badges but also knocked out.

''I hope those four will be OK,'' I said concerned.

***Anthony's p.o.v***

''Hey,'' a voice called. ''Can you hear us?''

''Wake up!'' I heard someone say.

''Snap out of it!'' another voice said. I woke and saw myself surrounded by the Pokémon from

Pokémon Square: Caterpie, the Jumpluffs, Team A.C.T, Blastoise, Snubble, Bellsprout, Lombre, Shiftry,

and Octillery. My friends got up with me.

''The star!'' I said frantically finally waking up all the way. ''Where's the star?!''

''It's all right,'' Xatu said. ''The star is no more! Slowly, the world's balance will be restored.''

''We did it!'' Squirtle exclaimed. Everyone cheered and started to party. _We did it, _I thought. _We _

_saved the world. And Gengar must've saved us when we were unconscious. _I was about to join the

others when gardevoir appeared.

''Congratulations,'' she said smiling. ''You completed your role.''

''Yeah,'' I said. I then felt great sadness. ''Does this mean I have to go home?''

''Yes, I'm afraid,'' Gardevoir replied sadly. ''Nature will not allow you to stay here. I'm sorry,

Anthony. Say good-bye to your friends. You don't have much time.'' Gardevoir disappeared. I then

started to get a tingling sensation all around my body. I looked down and saw little lights coming off of

me. Everyone then looked at me.

''Anthony,'' Squirtle said. ''What's happening to you?''

''I have to go, Squirtle,'' I replied in a somber tone.

''GO?!'' everyone exclaimed.

''Yes,'' I said. ''I have to return to my human life.''

''But why?'' Riolu asked.

''Nature won't allow my presence here,'' I replied.

''I can't believe this!'' Alakazam said.

''But Anthony,'' Zorua said. ''We're a team! You can't leave us!''

''It's beyond my control,'' I replied tearing up.

''I can't believe you didn't tell us!'' Squirtle shouted as tears welled up in his eyes.

''I didn't want to make you guys want to give up on the mission,'' I responded. ''Please guys,'' I

said approaching my team. ''Continue the rescue team without me. I'll always be with you. And I'll never

forget you.'' The tingling sensation started to grow stronger and suddenly, I rose into the air enveloped

in light. I then shot off into the distance.

''ANTHONY!'' I heard my team mates yell as I flew off. ''NOOOOOOO!''


	12. Chapter 12

**Let's Go Team Wildfire!**

**Chapter Twelve: Broken Hearts Mended**

***Squirtle's p.o.v***

We all stayed at the Hill of the Ancients mourning Anthony's departure. I was still in tears.

''Why Anthony?'' Charizard wondered. ''Why'd you have to go so soon?''

''I never got a chance to thank him for saving me,'' Shiftry said somberly.

''I still don't understand why he left,'' Caterpie said through sobs.

''I think I know why Anthony came here,'' Riolu said. We all looked at him. ''I believe he came here

to save us from the shooting star.'' Riolu then started to sob. We soon left for home.

***Anthony's p.o.v***

I was still flying through the air. I looked down and saw that I was soaring above oceans,

mountains, forests, plains, and more. It felt as though I was a spirit.

''I'm sorry that I had to leave, guys,'' I said to myself with the memories of my friends in my head.

''I'll never forget you. I'm thankful that I met great friends like you.'' I came upon Kanto and saw

someone on the beach all alone. Larraine! I then stopped above her and slowly descended.

***Larraine's p.o.v***

I was sitting on the beach near Pallet Town. Everyone was celebrating the meteorite's

destruction, but the empty hole in my heart where Anthony was still lingered.

''I wonder if Anthony is looking up at the night sky, too?'' I asked myself. A shooting star then

shot by. ''Star light, star bright, first star I see tonight,'' I began. ''I wish I may, I wish I might, have the

wish I wish tonight.'' I began to sob. ''I want Anthony back! I miss him so much!'' Suddenly, I noticed a

bright light in the sky. It wasn't a star. It stopped above me and started to descend. When it reached the

ground, it's height was about knee height. But then, it got taller until it was slightly taller than me. A

humanoid figure started to appear in it. It was Anthony! I put my hands over my mouth in shock. He was

wearing his uniform that he wore when he worked at the Pokémon Center in Viridian City. He looked up

at me smiling but also with tears in his eyes. Tears poured out of my eyes as I ran up to him and hugged

him causing us to fall backwards into the sea behind us.

''I'm so sorry, Larraine!'' he said sobbing. ''I didn't mean to leave you alone!''

''Where were you?!'' I asked through sobs. We got up and we sat down on the beach together as

he told me his story about how he turned into a Growlithe to save the world. ''I find that hard to

believe,'' I said sternly.

''But, it's true!'' he said. ''You gotta believe me!'' I turned my back to him. ''Here,'' he said as he

handed me a red scarf and badge that was round his neck. I looked at the badge and scarf. It then hit

me!

''The Growlithe that was on T.V. had a scarf and badge just like this!'' I said. I then looked at him

and sobbed. ''I'm sorry I didn't believe you!'' I said putting my arms around his neck.

''It's OK,'' he said stroking my hair. ''I know it was a little hard to believe.''

''And since what you said is true, then that means you saved the world!'' I exclaimed hugging

him tighter. ''You're my hero!'' I then kissed him on the lips. We then spent the rest of the night looking

up at the sky on this perfect evening.

**-THE END-**

**NOTE FROM THE AUTHOR: A sequel is in the works. Not right away, but I'll work on it after I take a bit of a break. Hope you all enjoyed my story and share it with your friends! Thank you!**


	13. Epilogue

**Let's Go Team Wildfire**

**Epilogue **

***Squirtle's p.o.v (Three days after Anthony's departure)***

Riolu, Zorua, and I still continued our rescue team without Anthony. We rose up to the silver

rank so far. Even though I'm proud of our work, I still wish Anthony was here to do these missions. I'm

still a little angry that Anthony didn't tell us he had to leave but I understand why he did that. It's hard to

stop thinking about him. I'll never forget the day he and I met in the forest. My friends and I were at the

beach one day as a celebration for our progress as a rescue team. We were strolling up the beach when I

tripped over something.

''You OK, Squirtle?'' Zorua asked.

''Yeah,'' I replied. ''Just tripped over something.'' I looked to see what I tripped over and

saw a strange object. It was see-through, tall and had writing on it that said _Krabby's Soda _(whatever

that was). I opened it up and out came some nasty-looking water. It was all brown and bubbly. But,

suddenly, I had an idea! ''Maybe I can send a message to Anthony in this!'' I exclaimed. I quickly ran

back to the base to get a feather pen.

''But, Squirtle,'' Riolu said, ''you don't know where Anthony is!''

''That's not going to stop me!'' I replied as I wrote the message. ''He's out there and this

message will get to him! Now here! Sign it you two!'' Zorua and Riolu signed the message and we ran

back to the beach.

''How are you going to even get it to him?'' Zorua asked.

''Like this!'' I responded. I threw the bottle into the ocean hoping it would get to Anthony.

***Anthony's p.o.v (Three days after the message was sent)***

Larraine and I were walking on the beach doing the usual beach activities. We were

having a nice afternoon together just walking, having a picnic, and admiring the sights. We were

swimming when I felt something bump into me.

''Hey, a message in a bottle!'' I said.

''Open it!'' Larraine said eagerly. ''Maybe it's a treasure map.'' I opened the bottle and the

message. Upon looking at the message, my heart skipped a beat.

''It's from my old team!'' I exclaimed. ''Team Wildfire!''

''Really?'' Larraine asked. I then read the message.

_Dear Anthony,_

_Wherever you are, I hope you made it home safely. I'm sorry I snapped at you when you said _

_you needed to go. I was just upset. Hope you and Larraine are having a wonderful time together now _

_that you are reunited. I'm sure that you're perfect for each other. The rescue team is still thriving. We _

_achieved Silver Rank! How cool is that? Hopefully, we'll reach Gold Rank soon and then Lucario Rank. I _

_really do hope that we'll meet again one day. Good luck with your life! We'll always be thinking of you._

_Sincerely, _

_Squirtle, Zorua, and Riolu _

''Squirtle,'' I said starting to cry, ''I'm sorry I had to leave you guys!'' Larraine just hugged

me in order to comfort me.

''Don't cry,'' Larraine said sympathetically. ''It's going to make me cry.'' We sat there on

the beach sharing in each other's sadness.


End file.
